The Tale of a Misfortunately Average Teen and His Right Hand Man
by The Killer Bunny
Summary: The last thing Tsuna had expected when he got into high school was for him to become the Tenth boss of the school's notorious gang of bullies!
1. Prologue

So, I wrote this fic a couple of years ago and finally decided to post it. Not one of my best works, but my friend Miyavilurver is forcing me to post it because she's crazy and says she loves it. Ugh Dx

As I've already finished writing this, I'll be updating it weekly. Here's the prologue and first chapter. This is a AU high school version of KHR. I tried my best to keep everyone in character despite the setting. Surprisingly, this did not end up turning into a yaoi fanfic xD Hope you guys like it!

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** The Tale of the Misfortunately Average Teen and His Right Hand Man**

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This was not how he expected his first year of high school to be like.

Sawada Tsunayoshi ran a hand through his hair nervously as he glanced behind him. Oh god, they were still following him. Why?! Why were they following him?! And with _that _expression! Tsuna hurried down the hall, wondering if he could lose the group of boys that were following him. But all hope was lost as he opened the door to his classroom and felt a hand on his shoulder. Tsuna slowly turned to look at the face of one of the most feared people in Namimori High School. Well, this was only half right.

Gokudera Hayato was indeed feared. From the moment he entered the school, Gokudera made sure to make his mark. He took over the school's local gang and became the Ninth boss of the school's bullies. You either feared him or revered him. If you had something he liked, expect it to be stolen by the end of the day. The gang was at a constant war with the Disciplinary Committee but it hardly did anything for all the students who were currently suffering under the oppression.

But all that had changed when Tsuna enrolled in Namimori. Gokudera was no longer the most feared student. He was no longer the Ninth. No, someone had overthrown him.

"Where would you like to sit, Tenth?" Gokudera looked at Tsuna with a smile. "We'll empty whatever seat you like!"

Tsuna looked forward again and found that Gokudera's sentiment was unnecessary. Everyone had stood up and backed off towards the walls. Every seat was empty and waiting for Tsuna to choose. All of the students stared in fear at Tsuna surrounded by his new thugs. As Tsuna took a step inside the classroom and every student flinched, it became clear. Through a horrible misunderstanding, Sawada Tsunayoshi was now, not only the Tenth boss of a school gang, but the most feared student in school.


	2. Chapter 1

"Oi, Tsuna. Wake up."

"Mmngh… Five more minutes…"

"…"

As he heard the silence, Tsuna smiled sleepily and turned onto his side and snuggled further into his warm bed, not wanting to get up. But his blissful sleep would be interrupted once again. Violently. The young boy was thrust into the wall next to his bed by a hard kick to his back. He let out a startled scream and shouted out the name of the culprit.

"REBORN! You don't have to wake me up like this!" Tsuna squirmed against the foot on his back that was keeping him pinned to the wall.

"Well, you're not waking up any other way. Hurry and get up. You're going to be late for school." Tsuna's older brother, Reborn, pulled his foot away and stood straight, watching as Tsuna sat up. Reborn stood so regally that one might have thought he was someone important. Despite his hands being in his pockets, his shoulders were thrown back he looked strong and confident. His black hair, though unruly and spiky, was often kept tame by a hat of some type.

Today, Reborn was wearing a dark charcoal-colored beanie with an orange stripe along the edge which matched well with his black school uniform, one that, starting today, Tsuna would be wearing too. At first, their mother had thought Tsuna could wear Reborn's old uniform, but it just wouldn't fit. Like their father, Reborn was freakishly tall and lean, whereas Tsuna simply hadn't caught up. So Tsuna had gotten a new uniform, his mother proclaiming that soon he'd grow into Reborn's old clothes. Somehow, Tsuna doubted it.

Tsuna breathed a slight sigh of relief as Reborn left his room and stood up to get himself ready. He walked over to his closet and pulled out the uniform, getting dressed, before going to the bathroom to freshen himself up.

Tsuna looked at himself in the mirror and not for the first time marveled at how different he and his brother were. While both their hair was unruly, Tsuna's was a light brown. Where Reborn's features were clear and sharp, Tsuna still had a bit of baby fat in his cheeks, making his face more full and rounded. Taking his height into consideration as well, Tsuna looked about three years younger than his age. Not to mention he was nowhere near as confident as Reborn was, so he often slouched over, making him appear shorter than he actually was.

Tsuna sighed slightly and finished his morning routine. He grabbed his bag from his room and hurried down the stairs to the kitchen.

"Morning, Mom!" Tsuna said with a smile as he sat down on the table, Reborn sitting at his left.

"Good morning, Tsu-kun!" His mother smiled, placing down his breakfast before tending to the five-year-old on Tsuna's right.

Tsuna's little brother, Lambo, was wearing his favorite cow-print pajamas and his black hair was puffed up and bushy. Unlike Reborn and Tsuna whom had dark-brown eyes, Lambo had light-green eyes, taking after their father instead of their mother. Lambo's cheeks had a few dabs of ketchup on them from the omelet he had just eaten and was now gulping down some juice. He put the empty cup down with an exaggerated "AH~!" before wiping his mouth with his sleeve.

"Hey! Tsuna!" Lambo looked at his older brother with wide, bright eyes. "Can I go to school with you today? At my school we play lots! Like Hide and Seek and we have naptime and then we eat snacks and then we play tag and then we can read books! What games do you play at school?! I wanna see what games Tsuna plays!"

Tsuna laughed slightly and shook his head, eating his own breakfast. "We don't play games. We do work at our school."

Lambo made a face as if he had just eaten something sour. "No games? I don't want to go to your school! Never mind. I bet it's really boring, just like Reborn!" he said with a loud laugh.

Reborn's eyebrow twitched slightly before stealing a handful of grapes from Lambo's plate.

"Nooo! Give me my grapes!" the five-year-old shouted, protecting the remainder of his favorite fruits with one hand and reaching out towards Reborn with the other.

"Too late." Reborn said as he ate the grapes with a smirk. "You have to be faster, brat."

"MOOOOM!" Lambo wailed as Reborn stood and sprinted out the door.

"Going to school! Bye!" the oldest boy called out with a grin as he left.

"R-Reborn!" Their mother called after him before she sighed slightly, giving the young toddler some more grapes to replace the stolen ones. "Tsu-kun, go catch up with Reborn. Have a good first day at school." She smiled at him.

Tsuna smiled back and ruffled Lambo's hair. The toddler, who was satisfied with several grapes in his mouth, giggled and waved enthusiastically, watching his older brother jog out of the house and after Reborn.

After catching up, Tsuna walked at Reborn's side. After a moment, his older brother sighed slightly. "Listen, Tsuna." He adjusted his hat. "You can't hang around me, alright? You're going to be with the first years, so make your own friends this year."

"I know that!" Tsuna frowned, looking at Reborn.

"You say that, but you never make friends."

"That's not my fault!" Tsuna sighed slightly, trying to regain his calm. He wasn't good at school or sports. There was nothing that he could really do so he didn't stand out at all. He was the most average person there was. If anything, people only paid attention when he got a bad grade, and that was something he didn't want attention for.

It was rather frustrating… but to be honest, Tsuna was scared of actually getting out there and talking to people. He knew he'd just be rejected in a second. There was nothing special about him, so why should he try?

"Yeah. Right. Just try this year, okay? For your big brother." Reborn said, giving Tsuna a smirk. Tsuna looked at him and sighed slightly before nodding. Reborn mimicked the motion with approval and patted Tsuna's head before running ahead to one of his friends who had turned onto the road a few feet ahead of them.

Tsuna watched his brother with slight envy as he walked the rest of the way to school by himself. He had to make friends this year. He had to. No more No-Good Tsuna. From now on, he'd make sure to be better!

Tsuna walked into the school and looked around. The school actually looked pretty nice. The students were all smiling and laughing as they all filed off to their homeroom classes. Tsuna, having attended the orientation, knew which locker was his and which homeroom he needed to go to.

This school year was a new year. Tsuna thought about how Reborn stood and copied the other's confident posture. He stood a little taller and tossed his shoulders back. Just by doing this, Tsuna felt his confidence swell. He smiled as he walked down the hallway, knowing that nothing could possibly go wrong.

But of course, something went wrong. Tsuna had been looking at the numbers of the classrooms, trying to figure out which was his, and he smashed straight into someone. The short brunette staggered back, losing his balance and falling down. The person who he had crashed into didn't even stumble.

Tsuna looked up and immediately his confidence disappeared. The student who had crashed into had to be at least a head taller than him. There were rings on each finger of his hands, the most prominent one being the sole gold one among the silver which was on the middle finger of his right hand. His hair was long enough for the tips to brush against his shoulders and the silky smooth locks were bleached white. His face was sharp and his green eyes angular and hard. Said green eyes were currently burning straight into Tsuna's. If looks could kill, Tsuna would have a hole in his head the size of a tennis ball.

But then, he found the source of the other's anger. The boy standing before him had been holding an open can of soda which was now splattered all over his uniform.

"Ah! I'm so sorry!" Tsuna scrambled to his feet. "I-I didn't mean to-!"

"You better pay me back." The white-haired boy growled. It was then that Tsuna noticed that this boy was not alone. Four taller and more menacing looking boys were standing at his side. They gave Tsuna identical glares.

"Hii!" Tsuna flinched back, giving a whimper of fear. "Y-Yes! Of course!"

The five boys looked at each other before the white-haired one smirked and looked at Tsuna. "Buy us lunch today too. I spent my last bit of money on this soda."

"I.." Tsuna looked at them. The four boys cracked their knuckles threateningly. "Eep! O-Okay!" he whimpered, taking out his wallet with slightly shaking hands. He presented the boy with the money and flinched as they laughed.

The white-haired boy took the money with a mean snort before turning to leave. One of the four thugs shoved Tsuna to the floor before following after their leader. Tsuna winced at the impact before sighing miserably, watching the boys leave. Yes… this year would be quite different… though probably not in the way Tsuna had intended.

"Hey. Are you okay?"

Tsuna looked up at the voice. A tall, lanky boy stood in front of him. His dark brown eyes were weaved with concern as he reached down to help Tsuna to his feet. His black hair was cropped short and even though he had a lean form and matured features, there was something about the way he looked that made you think everything was okay. Tsuna also noticed that in addition to his backpack, he had a sports bag in which the handle of a baseball bat was sticking out of the opening.

"Y-Yeah, I'm okay. Thank you." Tsuna said softly as he accepted the boy's hand and stood.

"That's good. My name's Yamamoto Takeshi." he said before flashing a smile that seemed to light up the school. Despite what had just happened, Tsuna couldn't stop the smile that crept across his lips.

"I'm Sawada Tsunayoshi." he introduced himself with a smile before shaking the other boy's hand. "It's nice to meet you. And thanks for helping me."

"No problem." Yamamoto's smile widened.

Tsuna glanced at the retreating gang before turning to the taller boy. "Who were those guys, anyway? Are they like that with everyone?"

"Yeah." The smile disappeared from Yamamoto's face and he scratched his head slightly. "Just try to stay away from Gokudera and his gang, alright?"

"Gokudera?" Tsuna turned to look at Yamamoto.

"Yeah. That's the white-haired one. Gokudera Hayato." The tall boy sighed slightly. "When he came to this school, he took over the school's.. well… gang." The smile on Yamamoto's face was now slightly bitter. "He's the ninth one to do so, so they call him Ninth. But to be honest, they're not the only problem."

Tsuna paled slightly at this. "Not the only problem?! What else?!"

"The head of the Disciplinary Committee and Gokudera are at a constant war. So you're going to see a lot of fights break out."

"But isn't the Disciplinary Committee supposed to keep the peace?!"

Yamamoto chuckled slightly at that, sounding more carefree about the situation than one would expect. "I'm sure you've already realized that this school is a bit different than others. The head of the Disciplinary Committee is completely determined to wipe the gang out of the school, and to be honest, he doesn't really care who gets in his way."

Tsuna's jaw dropped. "That's… that's scary…"

"Yeah." Yamamoto laughed again. "But don't worry. I'll help you keep your head low." He patted Tsuna's shoulder. "Come on, let's sit together in class."

"Huh?" Tsuna looked at the tall boy in slight confusion. "You want to sit with me?" The utterly average, invisible, can't do anything right, No-Good Tsuna?

"Yeah. We're friends, right?" Yamamoto grinned.

Tsuna stared at Yamamoto's carefree smile and couldn't help but smile himself. He had _actually_made a friend. "Yeah!"

Wouldn't Reborn be proud.

* * *

Tsuna wished Yamamoto was here. The baseball player had wolfed down his lunch and promptly disappeared with a cheery goodbye as he left to join his teammates on the baseball field for the orientation for the team. Apparently, Yamamoto was obsessed with the sport. Tsuna would have to make it a point to see his games.

But for now, Tsuna was seated alone in the small courtyard on the roof of the school. A few other people were also eating lunch there, but they were huddled in their own groups and were so far away from Tsuna that they might as well not even be there.

Tsuna sighed absently and continued eating. He faintly heard the door to the roof open up but paid no attention to it. Bad mistake. Suddenly, a shadow fell over him. It took Tsuna a moment before he realized that he was no longer alone. He looked up from his lunch and saw that there were five pairs of legs surrounding him.

Gokudera was standing in front of Tsuna with a smirk. The young brunette jumped and shuffled a few inches away from the boy.

"Weren't you going to buy us lunch?" Gokudera smirked down at him.

Tsuna shivered slightly, glancing around at the boys. "Ah… Y-Yes…" he whispered slightly. Tsuna pulled out his wallet and held out the rest of his money, which wasn't very much, to Gokudera. The gang leader took the money and counted it before scoffing.

"This isn't enough!" Gokudera growled. "What are you saying? We're not good enough to buy the good lunch?! Eh?!"

"N-No! I just brought enough money for myse-" Tsuna's words were interrupted by Gokudera grabbing his shirt and lifting him up.

"You're annoying." Gokudera growled before pulling his fist back, getting ready to punch the smaller boy. But Gokudera's fist was pulled back farther than he intended. He let go of Tsuna with a startled grunt as his arm was bent painfully behind his back.

"Don't touch my brother."

"Reborn!" Tsuna had never been happier to see his older brother.

Reborn flashed Tsuna a smirk before jumping back as two of the other boys went to attack him.

"How dare you lay a hand on the Ninth!" one of them said, standing protectively in front of Gokudera.

"Leave him to us, Boss! No need to waste your time!" another one said after.

"Hmph. Fine. I'm going. Beat him to a pulp." Gokudera scowled before he, and the remaining two boys, left with the rest of Tsuna's money.

Reborn put a hand on his hip and sighed slightly, shaking his head. "What, only you two? That seems a bit boring."

"You'll pay for assaulting our Boss!" The two boys rushed forward.

Tsuna wasn't sure what had happened. On reflex, he had flinched in anticipation for his brother. After all, even though his brother was older and taller, those boys were definitely more muscular and fearsome.

But when the sounds of fighting had died down and Tsuna opened his eyes again, he saw the two boys fleeing the roof and Reborn standing there, watching them go. His older brother was completely unscathed.

"Reborn! Are you okay?" Tsuna said on reflex, going over to him.

"I should be asking you that." Reborn looked down at his brother. "I know I told you to make friends but I think you're doing it wrong."

"They weren't my friends!" Tsuna protested immediately.

"Obviously. What's going on?" Reborn crossed his arms and looked at the shorter brunette.

"Well…" Tsuna took a deep breath before he explained the events that occurred that morning. About how he had crashed into Gokudera and his gang and how after he left, Yamamoto had helped him. Reborn, at the very least, seemed pleased that Tsuna had found a decent friend. Though it was obvious that Gokudera and his gang still bothered him.

"Listen, Tsuna. Don't let yourself get cornered by those guys, alright?" Reborn told him seriously. "Don't give them money and just ignore them. If you react to what they say or give them what they're asking for, they'll never leave you alone."

"But if I don't give them money, they'll beat me up!" Tsuna fiddled with his hands nervously. He knew he sounded pathetic but it was the only thing he could do.

"Eat lunch with your friend, alright? Don't let them catch you alone." Reborn warned him before he sighed and ruffled Tsuna's hair. "Knowing you, though, you'll mess it all up somehow."

"Oh thanks! My life is on the line here!" Tsuna had a distressed tone to his voice, though he knew his brother was trying to cheer him up. It was evident as Reborn laughed at his comment.

"You'll be fine! Don't worry so much. Just listen to your big brother's advice, alright?" Reborn said with a grin. "Want me to walk you back to your classroom?"

Tsuna sighed slightly. He rubbed his arm nervously before nodding. He felt very vulnerable and weak but he knew he needed his brother around. And Yamamoto had said he wouldn't be leaving during lunch anymore. That it was only on the first day. There was no way Tsuna could face those guys alone. No chance. So he knew that if he stuck by his brother and his new friend, things could only get better.


	3. Chapter 2

Since Yamamoto was aware of the problem with Gokudera, he knew why Tsuna wasn't eager to hang around after school. The baseball player offered to walk Tsuna home, and Tsuna was more than happy to accept. For once, Tsuna felt normal.

As he and Yamamoto walked out of the school gates, chattering about the day so far, Tsuna felt happy. He had always been alone with no one but his brother, but now, for the first time, he was walking home with someone who wasn't a part of his family.

Tsuna even invited Yamamoto inside when they arrived, an invitation that the baseball player gladly accepted. When Yamamoto was welcomed in, Tsuna's mom practically glowed with happiness.

"My Tsu-kun invited someone over! Next time, bring a girl, okay?" Nana beamed at them happily before rushing to make tea for them both. While Tsuna buried his face in his hands in embarrassment, Yamamoto laughed good-naturedly behind him. It really made it hard for Tsuna not to smile himself.

The afternoon passed by without a hitch. Even Reborn seemed to approve of Yamamoto, declaring he was welcome to come over whenever he wanted. Even Tsuna's little brother, Lambo, took a liking to the tall baseball player. Tsuna was happy that his first friend was accepted so well in his house.

Before it became too late, Yamamoto left to go home. Tsuna walked him to the door and waved goodbye before heading back up to his room.

Tsuna sighed and lay down on his bed feeling happy. He had a friend. Someone to laugh with, have fun, and maybe even protect him. Tsuna frowned a bit as he remembered Gokudera and what would await him tomorrow at school. But it was like what Reborn said. As long as he wasn't alone, Gokudera wouldn't try anything, right?

Tsuna heaved a sigh and opened his eyes, looking down. His eyes connected with two bright yellow ones.

For a moment, he just blinked, his mind trying to catch up with what he was seeing.

"REBORN!" Tsuna froze immediately as he realized what it was.

Reborn came into the room at his brother's call and laughed slightly, picking up the green lizard from Tsuna's chest. "There you are, Leon." He smiled and put the lizard on top of his head. Leon settled on top of the beanie happily.

"Jeez, Reborn. You should keep a closer eye on him." Tsuna frowned, sitting up.

"I do!" Reborn said, giving Tsuna a light smack on the forehead. "Besides, you shouldn't be talking! You've killed more fish than I can count. And I can count pretty high."

"It's not my fault! Fish are hard to take care of! If mom would let me have a cat or something, it'd be so much easier!"

"And risk you killing that too?" Reborn laughed slightly.

Tsuna huffed slightly and crossed his arms. "You suck."

Reborn snorted slightly before he sat down on the bed next to Tsuna. "So are you going to be alright tomorrow?"

"Yeah, I'll be fine," Tsuna said softly with a nod.

"Stick close to Yamamoto," Reborn said, standing up. He then smirked. "If you need anything, just scream and your big brother will come to the rescue."

Tsuna pouted slightly. "Stop treating me like a girl!" He scowled before pushing Reborn out of his room. "I'm your BROTHER! Not your sister!"

Reborn laughed before he reached back and grabbed Tsuna, putting him over his shoulder easily. "Yeah, I know!" He smirked as the young brunette squeaked and squirmed. Surprisingly, Leon the lizard stayed on Reborn's head this whole time as if it was used to all of this.

Eventually, Tsuna was placed back on his bed and Reborn returned to his own room. Despite his annoyance, Tsuna felt relieved. The first day of school had gone by pretty smoothly. He didn't get beaten up and he had made a friend. Tomorrow could only get better. He knew it. It just had to be better.

Things just had to get worse, didn't they?

The day had been too good to be true. Tsuna had spent the school day happy and relaxed. Yamamoto was at his side and laughing for the whole day. They met at the front gates of the school and walked together into homeroom. They spent lunch together and returned to the classroom late. They got extra homework as a punishment. As the day ended, Tsuna invited Yamamoto over his house to do the homework together.

"I have a baseball meeting today." Yamamoto smiled sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head.

"Oh, alright. You want to come over after, then?" Tsuna offered as he picked up his bag.

"Yeah, definitely." Yamamoto grinned, shouldering his own bag before waving a goodbye and running off to the boy's locker room. Tsuna smiled a bit and waved back, watching his retreating form. Then without a care in the world, Tsuna walked out of the school, heading for the sidewalk to walk home.

But this is when his day finally turned sour.

Tsuna looked ahead of him and spotted two bulky teenagers about twenty feet away. The brunette immediately recognized them—their faces were too scary to forget. It was Gokudera's gang. Tsuna went pale and immediately turned to take a different route home. He didn't walk more than a block before he saw another pair of the bullies ahead of him. Tsuna turned down another street. He glanced behind him and saw that the two more recent teens were now following him. Tsuna gave a small whimper and picked up the pace.

As he turned the corner, there they were again. The gang was staring him down. Tsuna's only remaining option was to slip through a narrow road away from the main street. But as he headed down this path, he saw that the exit to the small alley was blocked by a fence. Tsuna stopped in his tracks and turned around to try another way, but the four teens were now blocking the entrance. That was when it hit him.

They had been herding him all along.

Like a pack of wolves, scaring a small rabbit into a corner so he'd be far away from his burrow. Far away from escape. Tsuna backed up against the fence, feeling the threatening stares burn into his skin. He could see two of them had bruised faces. Tsuna had no doubt that those were the ones that had met Reborn yesterday.

"Well, well, well. Look at what we've got here."

The teens parted in the middle, two on each side, allowing Gokudera to pass through. He glared down at Tsuna, seeing as he was about a head taller than him. Not as tall as Yamamoto, but tall enough. Tsuna tried his best not to cower against the fence.

"Your big brother can't save you now."

At Gokudera's statement, two boys grabbed Tsuna's arms and tossed his school bag to the floor. No matter how much Tsuna struggled, though, the boys easily pushed him up against the alley wall. They held his arms tightly, so much that Tsuna could feel the tips of his fingers begin to go numb. But his fingers were the least of his worries.

A hard, blunt pain exploded in his stomach as Gokudera rammed his knee into him. Tsuna gasped for air, feeling his body constrict as none came at first. A few seconds later, he began to cough violently, his eyes tearing up in pain. Before he could fully regain his breath, a punch connected with his jaw, then a kick to his side. The blows continued for a while and the pain only increased until all Tsuna could do was breath and bleed.

Finally, the hands holding his arms suddenly disappeared. Tsuna's strength had long since left him. His legs refused to hold up his body and he fell to the ground on all fours. Tsuna trembled as his body ached. He thought it couldn't get any worse but then one last rough kick decided to meet with his side. Tsuna fell at the impact, and began coughing again.

"What a pathetic piece of shit." He heard their cruel voices around him laugh.

Tsuna curled up as he heard the gang leave the alley. He didn't have the courage to open his eyes or even move. So he didn't. He just laid there on the alley floor, shivering in fear and pain. He didn't know how long he was there for, but when he finally regained the strength to stand, the sky was beginning to darken.

It took Tsuna half-an-hour to limp the rest of his way home, a trip that would have usually taken him no more than fifteen minutes. But luckily, he didn't have to walk all the way. About a block away from the house, he heard a familiar voice call out to him.

"Tsuna!"

"Di…Dino…" At the sound of his big brother's best friend, Tsuna felt relief course through him, and this seemed to drain the last of the brunette's strength. Tsuna's body finally gave up and let the darkness take over him. He was already unconscious by the time he fell straight into the older teen's arms.

* * *

"…appened to him?!"

"I don't know, Reborn… I just found him like this."

The voices were slowly getting clearer as Tsuna felt the comfort of his bed. Everything else was muted. The pain was lowered to a dull throb except for a sharp pang here and there. He finally opened his eyes though, when he felt a cold wet cloth on his forehead. His tired eyes connected with his mother's worried ones.

"Tsu-kun!" She held back a sob and gently cleaned his face.

"I'm sorry, Mom... Don't cry," Tsuna said immediately, his voice rough and tired.

"Don't be sorry, you idiot!" Reborn growled, smacking Tsuna over the head. "This wasn't your fault!"

Tsuna winced before giving his brother a bitter smile afterwards. Reborn sighed disgruntled, only listening with half an ear as is mother scolded him for hitting Tsuna when he was in such a condition. While they spoke, Tsuna turned to look at the fourth occupant that was in his room.

Dino Cavallone was a third year who has been in the same class as Reborn since they were children. He was a very close friend of the family to the point where Reborn and Tsuna both thought of him as another brother. His eyes were a soft light-brown, the kind of color that reminded you of melted milk chocolate. Dino was not fully Japanese though. Due to his half European decent, his hair was a light blonde. The tips just about touched his shoulders.

His blonde hair, though, was not the only thing that stuck out about the teen. From his neck, to the tips of his fingers of his right arm, tattoos covered his skin. An image of barbed wire ran up his wrist and arm. On his forearm, there was a bright orange sun with a C in the middle. Then finally, on his shoulder running up to his neck was a black skull covered in a sky blue fire. Tsuna often wondered if the boy had more tattoos that were simply hidden from view. Dino didn't tell and Tsuna didn't ask.

"Hey, Tsuna. How are you feeling?" Dino caught Tsuna's eyes and smiled fondly at him.

"Okay… considering everything." Tsuna broke the eye contact to look at the ceiling instead.

Dino's smile disappeared and he sighed slightly, nodding with an understanding expression.

"Are you hungry, Tsu-kun?" His mother returned to his bedside. "You should eat something." She gently petted his head, eyeing his darkening bruises with a frown.

Tsuna sighed slightly and nodded, his mother's touch numbing the pain a bit. His mother smiled and nodded before she left, leaving Reborn to take her place at Tsuna's bedside.

"It was them, right?" Reborn asked with narrowed eyes. "That gang that I found picking on you on the roof."

Tsuna looked away and nodded slightly. But then he quickly returned his gaze to his older brother. "But, please don't do anything!" he said hurriedly.

"What do you mean don't do anything?!" Reborn snarled slightly and Tsuna couldn't help but to flinch. Dino put a calming hand on the older brother's shoulder. Reborn shot a glare at Dino but the touch had the desired effect. Reborn looked back at Tsuna, slightly calmer.

"I just…" Tsuna struggled for words. How could he explain this? This feeling of utter fear... His body trembled slightly as he remembered how hard he had gotten hit. Over and over. He could still feel it… "I… I don't want you to get hurt… Reborn, please don't go after them…"

Reborn grit his teeth. At first, it seemed that Tsuna's words were having the opposite effect. Reborn was growing tenser and angrier. But then Dino spoke up with a frown.

"Reborn, he's right. Besides, if you fight his battles for him, they'll only go after Tsuna again in revenge when you're not looking," Dino reminded him, crossing his arms over his chest.

Reborn looked at Dino for a moment before looking back at Tsuna. The siblings' eyes connected and after a single moment, Tsuna saw something inside Reborn click. He saw the gears in his head move. His older brother had gotten an idea, and through experience, Tsuna knew they were never good.

When Tsuna was two, he endured the first of Reborn's infamous ideas. Five-year-old Reborn had figured out a way to teach Tsuna how to walk. They had been in the park one day and it was a simple matter of enticing a stray dog with a sandwich before shoving it down Tsuna's shirt. Not only did the young toddler learn to run before he walked, but it struck a fear of dogs in him that plagued him to this day.

Then, at the age of five, Tsuna once again suffered an encounter with Reborn's evil mind. Reborn had wanted to make his little brother braver, so on Halloween he abandoned the younger boy in the middle of a haunted house. Tsuna emerged an hour later, never the same again.

So while Reborn always had good intentions, things always turned out horribly. Tsuna endured many of Reborn's trials and it seemed like he was going to have to endure one more. But before he could say a word of protest, Reborn was already up and running out of the room.

Tsuna's mouth hung open, his hand outstretched feebly as he realized his fate was sealed. Now he had two things to worry about. Gokudera and his thugs, as well as whatever Reborn was planning. Tsuna almost felt like crying.

Dino sighed slightly and patted Tsuna's shoulder. "I'll keep an eye on him, alright? You just relax." The blonde gave a comforting smile before running off after Reborn. Seeing the level-headed Dino pursue his older brother made Tsuna feel better, but only marginally. He knew that once Reborn had an idea, no one could stop him, but at least Dino could make it more bearable.

Tsuna managed to relax for the rest of the evening and in combination with his mother's amazing food and a good night's sleep, he recovered quite well. Tsuna was able to walk without a limp the next morning, though the bruises and sores still ached him.

As he got up and took off his pajamas, Tsuna noticed his stomach. A large purple and blue bruise had blossomed on his stomach, covering a large area. The flesh was tender there and it hurt whenever Tsuna touched it. The young student paled slightly at yesterday's reminder but continued to get dressed in his school uniform.

When Tsuna went down the stairs for breakfast, he was surprised to find out that Reborn had left early, and was even more surprised to see Yamamoto standing at the entrance of the kitchen.

"Yo, Tsuna!" The baseball player flashed him a cheery smile. "Your mom invited me in. Hope you don't mind!"

"No, of course not!" Tsuna said quickly before smiling as well. "But what are you doing here so early, anyway?" Tsuna asked as they entered the kitchen and sat down at the table.

"Ah, well." Yamamoto's smile shrunk slightly. "I heard about what happened to you yesterday and I wanted to walk you to school today. I can walk you home too since I don't have baseball today. If you don't mind, that is."

Tsuna looked at Yamamoto for a moment before smiling gently. Although they had only known each other for such a short time, Yamamoto was already worried for him. Yamamoto was kind and Tsuna was lucky to have met him. "I don't mind at all. In fact, I appreciate it," he said happily. "Thanks a lot, Yamamoto."

The smile returned at full force. "No problem!" the other said immediately.

The two boys talked animatedly over a breakfast that Tsuna's mother was more than willing to make for Yamamoto as well. Lambo even gave input as the subject changed to baseball. The small boy bragged that he could catch his bouncy ball perfectly every time and made Yamamoto promise to come and play with him one day. The baseball player laughed and nodded, ruffling the small boy's hair.

"Sure, sure!" he agreed with a grin. Tsuna laughed when Lambo announced that the three of them were going to have so much fun and that their older brother, Reborn, wasn't invited.

Tsuna and Yamamoto walked to school with a good disposition. Tsuna barely even felt his injuries as he laughed and smiled with his friend. Though when they entered the school, the bruise on his stomach gave a bit of a twinge as he spotted some of Gokudera's gang hanging near the entrance. Gokudera wasn't with them, but Yamamoto still grabbed Tsuna's arm firmly, picking up the pace as they reached the school. The young brunette was thankful for that. Once the gang was out of sight, Yamamoto's smile returned. Tsuna felt at ease, seeing it.

The rest of the day was spent avoiding the gang as much as possible. Tsuna and Yamamoto ate lunch in the classroom instead of on the roof. When walking out to a different classroom, Tsuna made sure to stick with the group as close as possible. Though he noticed that through the day, he only saw Gokudera's thugs and never Gokudera himself.

"I heard there was another huge fight with the Disciplinary Committee head and the Ninth's gang again," Tsuna overheard a student nearby. "Apparently they beat up some kid really bad and Hibari Kyouya went after Gokudera."

"Ah, those two are scary…" the other student responded, shaking her head. "I'm trying to get my mom to transfer me out of this place but she doesn't believe anything I tell her."

"Yeah, my parents too." The first student sighed. "All we have to do is keep our heads low and avoid catching attention to ourselves and we'll probably live to see graduation."

Tsuna shuddered slightly at the conversation he overheard. The fact that there was someone more terrifying than Gokudera was a horrible thought. He never wanted to get on the bad side of this Hibari Kyouya. Gokudera was enough. Thankfully though, it seemed like the head of the Disciplinary Committee was on Tsuna's side.

Not before long, it was afternoon break. Tsuna's class was on cleaning duty that day. The brunette's heart dropped when his teacher told him to take the trash to the dumpster that was behind the school. In a very isolated place… Tsuna gulped nervously before nodding, deciding if he moved fast enough, nothing would happen.

Tsuna hurried over to the dumpster with the trash bag. As he tossed the trash into the dumpster, he noticed a large scaffolding running up the side of the school with various building materials. Were they doing some repairs on the school? Tsuna looked around and found that various windows were shattered and some of the walls were cracked slightly. Tsuna wondered could have possibly caused that …

It was as the brunette turned to go back to the school that he crashed right into someone. Tsuna froze, dread beginning to spread through his body as he slowly looked up into the green eyes of the Ninth.

"G-G-Gokudera!" Tsuna squeaked in fear, staggering back a step.

"You got a lot of nerve," Gokudera snarled furiously. There was a large bruise on the gang boss' cheek. "Because you had to go blabbing, that annoying ass Hibari had to come after me."

"B-Blabbing?! I-I didn't say anything!" Tsuna's eyes were wide, darting around in fear as he noticed the rest of the boys slowly begin to close in again. In a second, he'd be cornered. He'd have to run now if he wanted to escape. So Tsuna swallowed his fear and bolted.

He ran through the closing gap, slipping out of the boy's grip. The gang was behind him and he was home free. All he had to do was hightail it back to the classroom and he'd be safe under the watch of the teacher.

But fate was against him. Tsuna stepped onto a stray baseball. He didn't have time to wonder how it got there before he slipped back. Flailing his arms, he tried to regain his balance, to no avail. Instead his arm smacked into the face of one of the boys who were pursuing him and as he fell back, Tsuna's head smacked into the nose of another boy behind him. The first boy stumbled back in shock while the second boy held his bloody nose in his hand as he fell to the ground as well.

Tsuna looked at this and became pale at the look on Gokudera's face. He couldn't take his eyes off the hard green orbs glaring at him. Tsuna didn't notice he was walking backwards until he had hit the wall of the school. A quick look around him told him he was standing under the scaffolding. There were iron supports on either side of him. There was no way out. The remainder of the gang began stalking towards him and when they were right in front of him, Tsuna screwed his eyes shut.

But then he heard a loud crash and several shocked screams. Tsuna cracked an eye open and his jaw dropped. There was a pile of wood on top of the now unconscious boys. The brunette risked a look in Gokudera's direction only to flinch fearfully at the other's positively murderous expression. Tsuna ran but didn't make it very far. Gokudera grabbed him and shoved him up against the wall. As the white-haired teen pulled back his fist to punch him, Tsuna noticed something weird. There were small rocks and dust trickling down on them.

Tsuna looked up to see a large concrete brick falling out of a window.

Time seemed to slow down as he looked straight to see Gokudera looking up at the brick in shock as well. Tsuna felt his body move on instinct. He shoved his shoulder against Gokudera's chest, pushing the boy and himself out of the way. A second after, the large brick landed on the sidewalk, leaving three or so large cracks on the solid ground.

Tsuna's eyes widened slightly at this. If they had been one second late, they would have died for sure. The shock took hold of Tsuna's body and suddenly everything went black.

* * *

The next thing Tsuna saw when he opened his eyes was the white ceiling of the nurse's office. It took a moment before he remembered what had happened and why he was laying in the nurse's office. That's right, he had almost died. What the hell were they thinking putting such a heavy brick in such a place? Tsuna groaned slightly, massaging his forehead.

"Oh, you're awake?"

Tsuna froze. That voice. Slowly, he looked to the side to lock eyes with the green ones of Gokudera. His heart stopped, wondering briefly if the other would attempt to do something while he was in the nurse's office. But then, he registered the other's expression.

Gokudera's anger was long gone. Instead on his face was a somber expression, even a bit of concern. As Tsuna looked around, he saw the rest of the gang there as well, bandaged up but with similar expressions.

"We didn't think you were that strong," one of the boys said.

"Yeah, you beat us good," another one said.

"On top of that, you saved my life even though I treated you so horribly," Gokudera said with a small frown. He then stood up and stood beside the other boys. They stood in a line and bowed low before speaking out in unison.

"We pledge our allegiance to you, Tenth!"

Tsuna stared at the boys who bowed before him. Tenth? If Gokudera was the Ninth…

"No! No wait!" Tsuna flailed his arms quickly as Gokudera looked up, the rest keeping bowed. "I-I can't be your boss!"

"Of course you can," Gokudera said simply. "You beat me."

"But I can't possibly-!"

"You will." Gokudera's eyes hardened as he glared straight into Tsuna's eyes. "That is our rule. You won so you will take over as our new boss."

Tsuna looked at Gokudera and his throat went dry. How could he say anything else? It was clear that they wouldn't accept anything other than an agreement. Even now as their new boss, Tsuna still couldn't assert himself. God, he was pathetic.

"A-Alright..." he muttered, with a despairing look on his face.


	4. Chapter 3

Hi, guys. This is actually the first author's note that I'm posting. All these chapters have been posted up by my friend mostly because I never really liked this fic very much. But she loved it, and apparently, you guys do too. I nearly have a heart attack every time I get an email saying someone reviewed or favorited, and I started screaming at my screen, "WHY?! IT'S NOT EVEN THAT GOOD!" But I've learned to appreciate all your support. Thank you so much for your patronage.

Though I would like to say that there are some reviews that have made me less than happy. Please, if you're going to read on, don't judge people for what they like and what they don't. Please don't tell me how I should write it or how it should end. I feel that it's a bit disrespectful to the other readers as well as to the author. This fic is already written and will end how it's going to end.

Thank you so much for reading and I hope this note hasn't discouraged any followers who've stuck with me so far. Be sure to check out the rest of my fics as well as my best friend Miyavilurver. We RP a lot and so we have each other's writings on each of our page.

Thank you again and I hope you enjoy the rest of the fic!

* * *

"I heard he grabbed a two-by-four and beat all of them up to a bloody pulp!"

"I heard he grabbed bricks and smashed it in this one guy's face!"

"No way, that was the guy he grabbed and head butted! At the same time, he punched this guy in the face!"

"I heard he even broke one of their arms with his bare hands!"

Whispers and rumors followed Tsuna as he walked through the hallway. He held onto his bag, glancing around. Gokudera was walking at his right side, insisting on being his "right hand." The other four boys were walking in formation behind the two. Somehow, this was scarier than when they were trying to beat him up.

"Hey, Tsuna!" It was like a voice from heaven.

"Yamamoto!" Tsuna smiled happily, seeing the baseball player running towards them. The boys immediately tensed and Gokudera stood in front of Tsuna, putting an arm out protectively. The other hand was clenched in a threatening fist.

"OI!" Gokudera yelled at a confused-looking Yamamoto. "Who the hell do you think you are!? Stop acting so casual around the Tenth!"

"Tenth?" Yamamoto blinked before looking at the shocked Tsuna.

"G-Gokudera! Leave him alone, he's my friend!" Tsuna protested quickly.

Gokudera looked at Tsuna before looking disbelievingly at Yamamoto. He then moved aside and returned to Tsuna's right side.

Yamamoto looked at the boys and then at Tsuna, his expression slightly unreadable. Oh no. The only friend he had… Tsuna was sure he was about to lose him. After all, who wanted to be friends with the head of a school gang!? But once again, Yamamoto caught him by surprise as the baseball player started to laugh.

"That's awesome, Tsuna! You made some great friends! You're the leader, right? Can I join?" Yamamoto said with a laugh and a smile.

Tsuna's jaw dropped and Gokudera spoke before he could react. "Like hell! The Tenth would never allow someone like you to join!" He growled. "This isn't some game!"

"G-Gokudera! Please!" Tsuna looked at him. "Please be nice to Yamamoto!"

Gokudera looked back at Tsuna and sighed slightly before nodding and crossing his arms with a huff. Tsuna looked back at Yamamoto and sighed slightly. "I'll talk to you about all this later, but... if you don't mind, Yamamoto, I wouldn't mind having you around," he said, looking at him as he bit his lip a bit. With Yamamoto around, Tsuna was sure he could be a bit more confident.

"Of course I wouldn't mind!" Yamamoto grinned. "This looks fun!"

Fun… Fun was the last word on Tsuna's mind.

So as they headed to the classroom, Yamamoto walked on Tsuna's left side, talking excitedly about the baseball game that was coming up in a few days. It seemed he wasn't at all perturbed by the gang around him which had grown even tenser than before at the baseball player's arrival.

As Yamamoto spoke, it served to calm Tsuna down very much. Soon, the brunette was smiling and nodding at Yamamoto's words and exclamations. Gokudera, though, was thoroughly annoyed at the baseball player. But it was Tsuna's previous order that prevented him from punching the baseball idiot in the face.

As Tsuna and the rest of them entered the classroom, the rest of the students froze in fear. Usually Tsuna would see this whenever Gokudera walked in, but now, the fearful gazes were directed at him. The smile Yamamoto had given him faded away.

Tsuna frowned and moved to his seat. The people around him suddenly scrambled away and the rest of the gang took the now empty chairs. Gokudera was, of course, on the seat to his right. Yamamoto took the seat to his left. The other four boys arranged themselves so that there were two behind Tsuna and two in front. There was a perfect square around the Tenth boss and it made Tsuna feel rather suffocated.

The rest of the day, however, went on quietly. Their last two classes took place without incident. and when it was time to go, the four boys along with Yamamoto and Gokudera walked Tsuna out of the school. As they reached the gate, Reborn and Dino stood there, watching them. Dino was slightly shocked while Reborn had a slightly smug look on his face. The older Sawada waved with a grin and Yamamoto smiled and waved back. Tsuna looked between them, wondering what was going on and why Reborn wasn't asking any questions.

Regardless, the other boys didn't allow Tsuna to stop to talk to Reborn. It seemed they still hated his guts. Tsuna was forced to continue walking out of the school as the boys glared hotly at Reborn. Tsuna didn't want them to start a fight so he was grateful when the rest of them followed his pace.

As they walked down the street, one by one, the other four boys stopped and bowed to Tsuna, bidding good afternoon before taking a different route. By the time they arrived at Tsuna's house, Yamamoto and Gokudera were the only two that were accompanying him.

"Good afternoon, Tenth," Gokudera said respectfully. "I'll see you tomorrow."

"See ya, Tsuna!" Yamamoto said with a grin.

Gokudera growled and glared at Yamamoto. "Stop being so casual!" But Gokudera's yelling fell on deaf ears as Yamamoto just laughed. Gokudera clenched his fists and Tsuna was quick to jump in front of him.

"Please calm down, Gokudera!" Tsuna said quickly, still slightly scared of the taller boy.

Gokudera, though, did calm down. He glared at Yamamoto before nodding to Tsuna. "See you tomorrow."

Tsuna sighed slightly and nodded, watching him go. He wondered if he was still, in a way, being bullied to be their boss. This all seemed way too surreal.

"Hey, Tsuna." Yamamoto put a hand on the brunette's shoulder. Tsuna looked up at him. "Don't sweat it, alright? Everything will be fine." He flashed his signature carefree smile.

Tsuna smiled a bit and nodded. "Yeah. I guess this is better than how things were before. Thanks, Yamamoto."

Yamamoto grinned before bidding Tsuna goodbye. Tsuna entered his house, nearly tripping on his little brother who was bolting across the living room, chasing a small green lizard.

"Lambo!" Tsuna hurried over and picked Leon up. The small five-year-old pouted.

"Tsuna's no fun!" Lambo proclaimed. "Leon and I were playing tag!"

"You know Reborn doesn't like it when you touch Leon," Tsuna scolded, trying to prevent the traumatized lizard from hiding in his hair.

"Bleh! Reborn is boring too! And he's stupid! And dumb! And-"

"What did you say, brat?" Reborn was suddenly behind Tsuna and glaring down at Lambo. The five-year-old immediately paled.

"I SAID YOU WERE DUMB," Lambo screamed in an attempt to hide his fearful tone. "Y-YOU'RE LUCKY I HAVE THINGS TO DO OR ELSE I'D BEAT YOU UP." After this, the five-year-old fled to the kitchen, most likely looking for their mother to cling to.

Tsuna sighed slightly as he felt Leon jump from his hand and land on Reborn's shoulder. His older brother petted the little lizard's head, calming the small reptile. Reborn then looked at Tsuna and smirked a bit.

"So I see you made a few more friends," Reborn said with a slightly smug tone.

Tsuna frowned, looking at him. "You can hardly call them friends!" he said, shaking his head. "They're scary! I don't even know how it happened! And now they're calling me Tenth. They're convinced that I'm their new boss!"

At these words, Reborn began laughing heartily. Tsuna's eyes widened slightly in shock, but then he frowned. "This isn't funny, Reborn!" he said, his voice cracking with slight distress.

"Of course it is!" Reborn chuckled. "Yamamoto and I only planned for them to leave you alone, but this turned out so much better than I ever thought!"

Tsuna stared at his older brother as he continued laughing. Then it all suddenly made sense. The baseball he slipped on. The wood falling from the scaffolding. The brick.

"THAT WAS YOU?!" Tsuna's eyes were wide.

"We had to do something," Reborn said with a smirk. "If not, they'd never leave you alone. Originally, Yamamoto and I had planned to just scare them away from you." He smirked a bit wider. "But now you command them, Tsuna! Good job!"

"You could have seriously hurt someone, Reborn!" Tsuna frowned. "Especially with that brick!"

"Don't worry, it wasn't going to hit you."

"Even if it was just to hit Gokudera! That's horrible! You could have killed him!" Tsuna grit his teeth.

Reborn's eyes turned hard. "Anyone that messes with my little brother like that deserves what's coming to them."

Tsuna stared in slight shock at Reborn for a moment before he frowned, looking away. "Did Yamamoto know about the brick?"

"No. That was my idea and he wasn't involved. The only thing he did was the ball. I did everything else," Reborn said simply.

Tsuna put his hands over his face, feeling a little relief. At least Yamamoto wasn't involved with Reborn in hurting people like what had happened. He felt a hand on his shoulder and Tsuna looked up at Reborn.

"Listen, Tsuna. I did that because I care about you. And you know just as well as I do that if that hadn't happened, nothing would have changed." He frowned.

Reborn's words hurt him, but Tsuna knew they were true. He would have never had the courage to stand up to Gokudera. Without Reborn's interference, he'd probably would have been beat up again and left at the dumpster.

"Reborn, I-"

Knock, knock!

"Tsu-kun, honey, could you get that for me?" their mother called from the kitchen.

"Y-yeah!" Tsuna sighed slightly as he watched Reborn take the interruption easily. His older brother was already heading up the stairs. Tsuna went to the door and opened it, slightly shocked at who it was.

"Gokudera? What are you doing here?" Tsuna blinked in slight shock as he stared at his self-proclaimed right hand.

"You dropped a book, Tenth!" Gokudera was panting slightly and held out a textbook for Tsuna. The brunette blinked as he stared at the book, taking it and realizing that he did need the book for his homework.

"Oh… Thank you…" Tsuna muttered slightly. He held the book to his chest for a moment wondering what to do now. Gokudera was staring at him… "U-Um… Would you like to come in…?"

It was as if the words made Gokudera realize he was staring. The teen blinked several times before almost flailing. "Oh, no. It's okay! I don't want to intrude!" he said as seriously as he could. But Tsuna could see Gokudera was trying not to look embarrassed. Perhaps he wasn't as scary as he looked…?

"I... I'm sure Mom wouldn't mind," Tsuna said with a small, hesitant smile. He stepped to the side. "Come on inside."

Gokudera looked at Tsuna and rubbed his arm slightly. "Sorry for intruding..." he muttered as he walked in. Tsuna closed the door after Gokudera and after the taller teen removed his shoes, putting them next to Tsuna's, he led him into the house.

"I-if you want, you can stay for dinner. Mom loves having people over," Tsuna said with a small smile.

"No, I couldn't possibly-" Gokudera began to protest, but it was then that Tsuna's mother walked out and spotted Tsuna with a different boy this time. Her eyes lit up happily.

"Oh, Tsu-kun! You made another friend!" she exclaimed, clasping her hands together. "I'm so proud of you! Aren't you going to introduce him?"

Tsuna's cheeks reddened in embarrassment. "Ah… Yeah… This is Gokudera Hayato. Gokudera, this is my Mom."

"Good evening," Gokudera said stiffly. It was clear that the boy was out of his element.

"It's very nice to meet you, Gokudera!" She smiled at him brightly. "You're going to stay for dinner, right?"

"Well I don't want to intrude on-"

"Intrude? Oh never! You're always welcome to come and visit! Our door is open! Feel free to stop by whenever you like!" she said kindly.

Gokudera's cheeks reddened slightly before he nodded. "Y-yes. Thank you!" he said before bowing to Tsuna's mother.

Tsuna himself was embarrassed but slightly happy. Gokudera really wasn't that scary. He wondered why he had been so horrible before. Now he seemed so harmless. Maybe because Tsuna was his "boss" now? Either way, he much preferred this Gokudera rather than the first one he met.

"Dinner won't be ready for another few hours," Nana said with a smile.

"Okay, Mom. Um, we'll be up in my room then," Tsuna said before looking at Gokudera. "Come on. I'll show you up." The brunette led him up the stairs and to his small bedroom. Once they got inside, they walked in on Lambo pulling several of Tsuna's things off the shelves as if he was looking for something.

"Lambo!" Tsuna put the book down before hurrying over and pulling the small five-year-old away from the shelf.

"HEY! WAIT! I WANTED TO PLAY!" Lambo complained loudly.

"You're not supposed to be playing in here!" Tsuna said, putting Lambo down in front of the door.

"Eh? Eh? Who's this?" Lambo was immediately distracted at the sight of Gokudera. He put his hands on his hips. His favorite cow-print pajamas were dirty from playing and food and his hair was as unruly as always. "You look stupid!" he announced with a laugh.

Gokudera growled. "Shut up, you stupid cow! You shouldn't bother the Tenth like that!"

"I'm not stupid! You're stupid! And I can do what I want!" Lambo huffed, stomping on Gokudera's foot.

Gokudera grunted in pain and clenched his fists. "Why you…!"

Tsuna suddenly feared for his little brother's life. "L-Lambo! Gokudera and I are busy! Why don't you go bother Reborn!? I'm sure I saw him hiding some grape candies under his mattress!" he said quickly.

At the promise of his favorite candy, Lambo immediately bolted out of the door, heading straight for Reborn's room. Tsuna knew that Reborn would hate him for this, but Lambo was far better off taking Reborn's abuse than whatever Gokudera was capable of.

Gokudera scowled as he watched the boy run off down the hall. He sat down on the floor in front of the low table, Tsuna sitting on the other side with a sigh of relief. "Who was that kid, Tenth?"

"That's Lambo." Tsuna said with a sigh. "He's my little brother. And could you just call me by my name?"

"No," Gokudera said sternly.

Tsuna looked at him and found he couldn't argue. So he just nodded. They sat in silence for a few moments before Tsuna picked up the book Gokudera brought him. "Um, if you brought your homework, do you want to do it together?" he offered.

"Oh, I already finished it, Tenth," Gokudera said, looking at him. "But if you need help, I can help you with the homework."

"How…? How did you do the homework so fast?" Tsuna's eyes widened slightly. Did Gokudera even go home yet?

"I finished it during school. It was easy," Gokudera said with a small shrug. "Would you like me to help you?"

"Um... Sure. That'd be nice." Tsuna said with a small smile as he took out his work. As he did, Gokudera picked up his hair in a small ponytail and taking a pair of reading glasses out of his bag. Tsuna stared in slight shock. Gokudera looked completely different than usual. He looked… smart? He definitely looked a lot less threatening this way. The glasses framed his face in such a way that made him look gentler. The short tufts of hair that couldn't reach the ponytail gently grazed the other's cheeks and Tsuna couldn't pull his eyes away.

"Tenth, which homework would you like to start with?" Gokudera said, breaking the brunette's train of thought.

"Ah! Yes. Um… I guess math. I don't really understand it." Tsuna made sure to stare down at his math book as they began work. In the beginning, Tsuna didn't understand the math work at all, but as Gokudera explained, it soon hit him that the other teen was actually very smart. And it wasn't only math. Science and history also became easy as Gokudera helped him. Tsuna finished his homework in record time.

"Gokudera, you're really smart! I'm impressed!" Tsuna said with a smile as he put his completed homework away.

"Ah… Thanks, Tenth." Gokudera smiled a bit crookedly as he folded up his glasses, putting them away. "I'm glad I could help you."

"You really helped me. Thanks so much." Tsuna smiled and nodded.

Gokudera had removed the ponytail, his hair now covering his face as he bent over his bag. But Tsuna could have sworn he had seen a blush. Once again, the two were thrust into an awkward silence. Tsuna stared at the table for a few moments before glancing up at Gokudera. The white-haired teen stared at him before opening his mouth to say something, but instead of hearing his voice, Tsuna heard something far more annoying.

"TSUUUUUUUNAAAA!" Lambo burst into the room and ran over to his older brother. As the five-year-old hid behind Tsuna, it was evident as to why he was panicking.

"You can't hide from me, you brat!" Reborn burst into the room. His black hair was at full spikiness. He was brandishing in his hand his beanie which now had a hole in it.

"Tsuna! He's gonna kill me!" Lambo cried, his nose running slightly as he buried his face into the back of Tsuna's shirt. "It was a accident!"

"Like hell it was," Reborn growled.

"R-Reborn! I'm sure we can deal with this!" Tsuna said quickly, lifting his hands as a sign of peace.

"The only thing I'm going to deal with is that snot-nosed brat you're hiding," Reborn said darkly.

"HEY STUPIDERA! GET HIM FOR ME!" Lambo shouted obnoxiously at Gokudera who was sitting there.

"WHAT DID YOU CALL ME, YOU STUPID COW?!" Gokudera growled.

"My my, everyone's so lively!"

"MAMA! REBORN'S GONNA KILL ME CAUSE HE WAS STUPID AND BROKE HIS HAT!" Lambo shouted immediately at the sight of his mother. She took Reborn's hat and smiled a bit.

"Don't worry, I can have it fixed by tomorrow! No harm done! But dinner's ready right now, so why don't you come on down, everyone?" she suggested with a smile before she left with Reborn's hat.

Reborn watched his mother go before glaring at Lambo. "I'm going to get you for this, brat. Just you wait and see," he warned lowly before leaving down the hallway.

Lambo peeked out from behind Tsuna once Reborn was gone. Once he was sure that his oldest brother wasn't coming back, he put his hands confidently on his hips and laughed loud. "AND I WIN AGAIN!" he said before grabbing Gokudera's sleeve. "Let's go! It's time for dinner, Stupidera!" Of course Lambo was scared of going to the kitchen on his own so he was grabbing hold of the most fearsome boy in the room.

"It's Gokudera! And let go of me, stupid cow!"

"Butt head!"

"Idiot!"

"STUPID DUMMY!"

"SNOT-NOSED BRAT!"

The two growled at each other, electricity sparking as the tension grew between the fifteen-year-old and five-year-old. Tsuna was sad to think that it seemed like a perfectly reasonable rivalry was forming…

"Alright, alright… Come on, let's go to dinner," Tsuna said standing up with a slightly awkward smile. Gokudera and Lambo narrowed their eyes at each other before standing and walking out of the room after Tsuna. The two boys seemed unwilling to break the stare down. As if the person who looked away was the one who would lose. So as they walked, they kept their eyes locked onto each other.

It wasn't long though before Lambo began to get bored. So without breaking eye contact, he swiftly kicked Gokudera in the shin. The teen winced and cursed slightly, the five-year-old laughing loudly and victoriously.

"WHAHAHA! I WIN!" Lambo announced at the top of his lungs.

"YOU DIRTY CHEATER!" Gokudera growled and within seconds, he was chasing after the loud five-year-old.

Tsuna's heart stopped as he ran after them, fearing what Gokudera would do to his little brother. But Lambo made it to the kitchen before the white-haired teen could grab him.

"I see you made a new friend, Lambo-chan!" His mother smiled happily, picking the five-year-old up in her arms.

"Mama, I'm Stupidera's boss! He listens to everything I say!" Lambo exclaimed victoriously.

"LIKE HELL!" Gokudera flexed his fingers as if itching to wring the annoying boy's neck.

"Ah… So what'd you make, Mom!?" Tsuna said a bit louder than necessary, just to get Gokudera to stop glaring murderously at his little brother.

His mother smiled happily. "Oh, nothing special. I would have made something better if I knew you were going to bring a friend over, Tsu-kun!"

At these words, Gokudera immediately straightened up respectfully. "I apologize again for intruding, Tenth's Mother!" he spoke as if he was in the army.

"Don't worry about it, Gokudera!" she said with a wave of her hand and a smile.

Tsuna wondered if his mom was oblivious or if she was just choosing to ignore Gokudera's… quirks.

Regardless, they all somehow settled down for dinner. Gokudera was too busy arguing with Lambo to throw hatred glares at Reborn and Reborn was glad to ignore him. Other than this, Tsuna noticed that his mother seemed to enjoy all of the commotion. Tsuna smiled slightly at his mother's happiness.

"Mama! I want a lollipop!" Lambo said, grains of rice sticking to his cheeks and shirt.

"Of course, Lambo-chan!" Their mother looked at Gokudera and smiled. "Is there anything you want for dessert, Gokudera-kun?"

Gokudera had grimaced slightly at the mess that Lambo made all over himself, but when he heard the Tenth's Mother's words, he quickly shook his head. "No, thank you! I should get going! I've intruded enough!" he said, looking visibly uncomfortable at the kindness being offered to him. He quickly stood up, bowing to Tsuna's mother who just nodded politely in response.

"Ah, then I'll walk you to the door, Gokudera," Tsuna said, standing up.

"There's no need to, Tenth!" Gokudera said immediately, his discomfort shooting up.

"It's okay, I'm already up," Tsuna said softly, attempting to try and calm Gokudera. Of course the kinder tone made Gokudera blush with embarrassment, but he just nodded, unable to speak anymore against Tsuna.

Tsuna sighed slightly and walked with Gokudera to the door. He stood silently as Gokudera put his shoes back on, and Gokudera returned the silence. After he finished putting on his shoes, he stood and looked uncomfortably at Tsuna and the awkwardness extended for a few more seconds.

"I'll… see you tomorrow, Tenth," Gokudera muttered before he bowed low. "Have a good evening!" he said curtly before turning and hurrying out the door.

"See you, Gokudera," Tsuna called after him before sighing slightly. He wondered what he was doing wrong. He figured if he was nicer to Gokudera, then they could easily be friends… But being nicer to him just seemed to provoke the situation.

"He's not used to it."

"What?" Tsuna turned to see his older brother standing behind him.

"I said he's not used to it." Reborn said, looking at Tsuna. "Normally people don't treat him so nicely."

"I guess…" Tsuna looked at where Gokudera had been standing just a few moments before closing the door. "What should I do?"

"He'll get used to it." Reborn put a hand on Tsuna's head. "You just keep being your stupid, naïve, innocent, and vulnerable self."

"… I'm not sure whether or not to take that as a compliment…" Tsuna frowned, pushing Reborn's hand off.

Reborn just smirked cryptically before turning around and calling to his mom for an espresso. The young brunette stared after his brother before shaking his head slightly. Why couldn't things be simple? Why couldn't he just have a normal high school life with a couple of friends, an average GPA, and simple planning for the future?

But now he was the head of a gang that ruled over the school using fear. No matter how he tried to look at it, this was going to ruin his life. It would most likely go on his permanent record, colleges wouldn't accept him, he would never get hired, and then he'd be arrested on suspicion for murder!

Okay, maybe that was going a bit too far, but who knew?

Tsuna trudged up back to his room, mulling over Reborn's words. Gokudera wasn't used to kindness. What a sad life that had to be. Perhaps Gokudera wasn't as scary as he first thought. Perhaps there was something a bit deeper that he had to discover.

Tsuna fell asleep that night, his head filled with thoughts of his right hand man.


	5. Chapter 4

"Good morning, Tenth!"

"Morning, Tsuna!"

"Baseball idiot! What have I told you about being so casual?!"

"Ahaha! Sorry, sorry!"

Gokudera growled at Yamamoto standing next to him as Tsuna walked out of his front door. The young brunette smiled slightly. "Good morning," he greeted softly.

Gokudera immediately looked away from Yamamoto and stood straight, nodding confidently. "Shall we go, Tenth? Do you have everything?"

Tsuna smiled and nodded. "Yeah, come on, let's go."

Yamamoto was the most talkative one as they headed down the road. As the baseball player raved about the game that was coming up, Tsuna noticed that at certain points, the rest of their "gang" would slowly join the group. One by one. But when they arrived at the school, Tsuna noticed that something was off.

"There's only three of you," Tsuna said in slight confusion, looking at the boys he didn't know. "Where's the one with the broken nose...?" Tsuna blushed in embarrassment.

"I took care of him, Tenth," Gokudera spoke. "You can only have four followers. It's a tradition."

"So you kicked him out?"

"He was weak and I showed him that I was more fit to follow you than he was," Gokudera said simply.

"So you beat him up?!" Tsuna paled slightly. "Is he okay?!"

Gokudera looked at Tsuna in slight shock. "Um, yes, Tenth. He's fine…" he said, slightly confused at the brunette's reaction.

The relief that washed over Tsuna, though, didn't last long. As he observed the other three boys looking at Yamamoto, he realized that he had five followers. Yamamoto would have to… "prove his worth." Yamamoto, luckily, looked blissfully ignorant of this fact. Tsuna hoped that the other three boys wouldn't attack Yamamoto when the baseball player was alone. This was more dangerous than Tsuna had previously thought.

Before Tsuna could warn Yamamoto of the boys' intents however, a loud shout that traveled across the school campus reached Tsuna's ears as if it was coming from right next to him.

"SAWADAAAA!"

Tsuna froze and turned around at the sound of the rough, loud voice. He saw someone running towards him.

He had to be a third year. This boy was wearing athletic tape around his wrists, hands, and fingers and he had a bandage across his nose. The teen was very athletic looking. But it was a different than how Yamamoto looked. While Yamamoto looked tall, lean, and lanky, this teen was more muscular. He looked like he could pack quite a punch where as Yamamoto would probably beat him in a foot race. His hair was very short, not even an inch long, and was white, almost gray, in color. A thin scar ran vertically up the tip of his eyebrow and across his temple.

By the time he got close enough, Tsuna noticed the teen's gray eyes burning with the fire of excitement.

"SAWDA!" The third year boy stood about five feet away from Tsuna, but he shouted as if he was still across the campus. "YOU HAVE TO JOIN THE BOXING CLUB!"

"Wh-what?!" Tsuna blinked, Gokudera and the other three boys tensing at the presence of this loud, boisterous teen.

"I heard about what you did to them!" The boxer brandished a flyer at Gokudera and the other three boys. "We have a tournament coming up! LEND US YOUR STRENGTH!"

The flyer was thrust into Tsuna's hand and the brunette looked at it with slightly wide eyes.

"JOIN THE EXTREME BOXING CLUB!" was written crudely across the flyer with drawings that could have been made by a three-year-old decorating the rest of the space. They were drawings of people with boxing gloves, punching bags, and a champion's belt.

"EXTREME, ISN'T IT?! I MADE IT MYSELF!" the teen announced as he put his hands on his hips and confidently laughed with mirth.

Tsuna stared in slight shock at this teen. Was he insane?

"HEY!" Gokudera shouted with his voice at a volume to rival the boxer's. "The Tenth isn't interested in your stupid club!"

"STUPID?!" The teen now looked as if Gokudera had insulted his mother along with his entire ancestral line.

"Gokudera! Please don't say things like that!" Tsuna frowned slightly. At his scolding, both the teens calmed down. Tsuna then handed the flyer back to the boxer, deciding to be polite. "I can't really box. So I can't join your club."

"I CAN TEACH YOU!"

"N-No, it's just that-"

"ALRIGHT! I'LL TEACH YOU! PLEASE SHOW UP TO THE CLUB ROOM AFTER SCHOOL!"

"W-wait a second! I just-"

"THANK YOU VERY MUCH!"

Tsuna was left at the school gates with his mouth open as the boxer confidently ran off to chase after more possible recruits. Gokudera and the other boys looked equally as shocked. Only Yamamoto had a different reaction.

"Ahahaha!" Yamamoto laughed heartily, his hand over his stomach as he struggled to breathe. "That sounds fun, Tsuna!"

"You baseball dork!" Gokudera growled hotly, "The Tenth just got bullied and you're laughing?!"

Look who's talking… Tsuna glanced at Gokudera as Yamamoto tried to stop laughing.

Why couldn't he just have a normal high school life?

Well at least something stayed normal. That day in P.E., Tsuna was as pathetic as always. Tsuna would have been the last to finish the warm up laps if it hadn't been for Gokudera and Yamamoto sticking behind with him. Not to mention that since they were doing baseball that day, Tsuna would look even more pathetic, especially when standing next to Yamamoto.

Yamamoto might as well have been professional. While he smiled and laughed most of the time, once a baseball was placed in his hand, Yamamoto's expression would change to such seriousness, it was almost scary. Not to mention his pitching speeds and batting averages rivaled professional teams. Many catchers had red spots on their hands after catching Yamamoto's pitches.

One of the three unnamed of Tsuna's followers went up to bat. But Yamamoto chose that moment to slip in his footing. Thus, the 80 mile-an-hour baseball smacked into the boy's head. The teen was knocked unconscious and sent to the nurse's office.

At least Yamamoto "proved his worth" in a more peaceful way than Tsuna had previously assumed. The young brunette felt sorry for the injured teen, though couldn't seem to find him anywhere throughout the day. It didn't help that the remaining two teens along with Gokudera were quite intimidating and warding off anyone who got too close.

But there was one student that couldn't be driven away no matter how hard the glare.

"SAWADAAAA!"

"It's him…" Tsuna squeaked in nervousness, hesitant to turn around and watch the boxer run down the hall to him.

"Are you coming to boxing club?!"

"I don't think I-" Tsuna began.

"Ryohei? Are you recruiting more people?" asked a voice that was like pure music to Tsuna's ears. He turned to find out where it had come from to see the cutest girl he'd ever lay his eyes on before.

Short brown hair framed her delicate face with light hazel eyes glinting in soft and innocent amusement. She had a small and gentle air about her that put Tsuna immediately at ease. But at the same time, Tsuna's cheeks were growing hot as he blushed madly.

"Ah! Kyoko! I'm just about to take him to go to the boxing club practice!" Ryohei announced proudly.

"Ah!" Tsuna snapped out of the trance. "No! I really don't want to!"

"No need to be shy!" Ryohei was not fazed at all.

"The Tenth isn't being shy, you turf head!" Gokudera stepped forward, pissed off that this short-haired boxer continued to bother them. "He doesn't want to join!"

"Well," Ryohei looked closely at Gokudera and spotted the other's semi-long hair, "Octopus-head, you can't speak for Sawada! Alright, Sawada! Let's go!"

Ryohei grabbed Tsuna and promptly began to tow him off down the hall. It wasn't malicious though. Ryohei was just blissfully ignorant of Tsuna's every protest.

Gokudera, who was slightly taken aback at the name, took a moment before he reacted, running off after Ryohei and Tsuna.

"Ryohei-senpai!" Tsuna was finally able to pull out of the other's strong grip when they got to the boxing club room. It looked very… empty. Tsuna looked around and frowned. "Where are the rest of the club members?"

"Well once I became club captain, they all said that they were confident in leaving the club in my hands," Ryohei said with a proud grin. "So they left!"

The whole club ran away from him?! Tsuna thought in horror as he stared at the boxer. Ryohei, oblivious to everything else, pulled out boxing gloves and pushed them into Tsuna's hands.

"There you go!" the boxer grinned.

"No way!" Tsuna said, immediately pushing the gloves back to Ryohei.

"Don't worry, Tenth! I'll take care of him for you!" Tsuna turned back to see one of the last two unnamed teens stepping forward and taking the gloves. "Once I beat him, he'll leave you alone."

At the sound of this challenge, Ryohei was immediately fired up. He changed within seconds and was in the ring with his boxing gloves firmly laced on.

"Um… Be careful." Tsuna said with a frown. The teen went into the ring and put on the gloves before taking the stance.

"Sawada! Ring the bell to start!" Ryohei nearly shouted.

"Don't give the Tenth orders, turf head!" Gokudera growled as he walked up to ring the bell instead.

There were a few moments of silence before the bell rang clearly through the room.

The gang boy went forward to punch first. He sent several punches towards Ryohei's face but the boxer dodged them all quite easily. And quick too. Tsuna felt like if he blinked, he would miss Ryohei moving. The boy got a bit frustrated as Ryohei easily continued to dodge his punches, but the frustration would soon be quelled. Sort of.

Ryohei finally made his first punch. His fist moved so fast, Tsuna didn't realize that he had hit him until the boy was already on the floor. The young brunette blanched when he realized that the boy was unconscious.

Ryohei blinked, realizing this as well before he lifted his arms in victory. "ONE HIT K.O. TO THE EXTREME!" he shouted happily.

Gokudera's mouth was open with shock as he stared at the unconscious boy. Yamamoto walked over and smiled a bit.

"Wow, sempai. You're good." The baseball player grinned.

"I know! I train every day!" Ryohei said proudly.

"Oh, really? Me too! What do you do?" Yamamoto grinned, leaning on the boxing ring.

It wasn't long before the two jocks began talking avidly about training regimens and practice schedules. It was quite the sight. Ryohei was crouched down to look at Yamamoto with the unconscious boy behind them and the two athletes were talking with grins on their faces.

Tsuna was possibly more horrified than when Gokudera wasn't on his side.


	6. Chapter 5

Tsuna wasn't sure how this even happened, but after Ryohei beat up that teen and spoke avidly with Yamamoto, Ryohei declared that he was their friend. Without anyone's consent, Ryohei became part of the group. It was evident when Tsuna was being walked home as usual by Gokudera and Yamamoto, but Ryohei had replaced the teen he had knocked out. He had happily conversed with Yamamoto while Gokudera groaned in annoyance, muttering something about stupid jocks.

The next few days were peaceful enough. Ryohei hadn't quite given up on recruiting Tsuna into the boxing club but it was easy enough to avoid when Gokudera stepped in. Gokudera and Ryohei would argue for a moment, Ryohei would find something more interesting to do, and then the conversation would be dropped until the next day.

About a week later, though, once Tsuna was just getting used to everything, something horrible happened.

Tsuna walked up to a vending machine on the side of the school with Gokudera at his side as usual. The brunette was about to buy something before he realized that he didn't have the right coins. Tsuna asked Gokudera if he had change and the right hand man was depressed when he had to refuse him. He turned to see another student standing behind him and waiting.

"Hey, do you have some change?" Tsuna asked with a smile.

But for some odd reason, perhaps it was Gokudera's scary glare, the student took it completely the wrong way.

"H-Here! Have my money! Don't hurt me!" The student threw money at Tsuna's feet and ran off.

"W-wait! I didn't want your money!" Tsuna called after him frantically. But the student was already out of earshot. The brunette sighed slightly and picked up the money from the floor, intending to find the student and return it. But then, a voice interrupted his thoughts.

"I will not allow you to terrorize and steal from the students in my school."

A teen that had to be in his third year glared at them. He had soft, well-kept black hair and light-blue eyes. He was lean and stood with confidence. But the most noticeable thing about him was the aura of murderous intent that surrounded the boy.

"Hibari Kyouya…" Gokudera growled, clenching his fists.

Tsuna looked at Gokudera for a moment. "Hibari Kyouya?" Where had he heard that name before?

_"I heard there was another huge fight with the disciplinary committee head and the Ninth's gang again. Apparently they beat up some kid really bad and Hibari Kyouya went after Gokudera."_

Tsuna froze as he remembered the students talking the day of the "fight" that changed his school life. That conversation he had overheard before the fight with Gokudera.

"W-Wait! You're the head of the Disciplinary Committee?!" Tsuna took a step back, suddenly realizing what this meant.

"I heard the Ninth had been overthrown." Hibari smirked, though it was more like a twitch on the corner of his lips. "You must be the Tenth. Nice to meet you."

It was at that moment that Hibari rushed forward, pulling back his fist. Tsuna gave a squeak and flinched, bringing his arms up in a pathetic sort of defense. But the hit never connected.

Tsuna opened his eyes to see Gokudera standing in front of him. He was holding onto Hibari's… weapon!? Where did he even get that?!

Hibari was gripping a gray, metal tonfa in each hand. The metal was shiny and it was clearly well taken care of. Only black rubber covered the handle of the fierce weapon. The short metal rod extended from his fist down to his elbow. Gokudera was gripping the tonfa while he and Hibari glared at each other fiercely. The tonfa was shaking from the force applied to it from either side.

"If you want to get to the Tenth, you'll have to go through me," Gokudera growled lowly.

"Gokudera…!" Tsuna's eyes widened slightly as a bit of worry leaked into his fear filled voice.

Gokudera looked back at Tsuna and was about to speak before the tip of the other metal tonfa slammed into his cheek. Gokudera's eyes were wide as he staggered back. He already felt his cheek swelling up. There was sure to be a nasty bruise there later.

"Don't let your guard down, _Ninth._" Hibari smirked a bit wider this time, applying a sense of mocking to the name.

Gokudera scowled deeply, glaring at Hibari. With a growl of indignation, he rushed at the older teen in front of him. Tsuna watched in slight horror as Gokudera threw a punch at Hibari. But the teen's fist collided with hard metal. Gokudera winced and Hibari took that moment to slam the blunt tip of the tonfa, along with his fist, into Gokudera's stomach. The white-haired teen's eyes widened before he doubled over coughing, trying to regain his breath.

"Gokudera!" Tsuna hurried forward and kneeled down next to the boy, putting a hand on his shoulder. "Gokudera! Are you okay?!"

"Tenth! Watch out!" Gokudera wheezed as he saw Hibari approaching. The prefect thrust his tonfa forward as Gokudera pushed Tsuna to the floor, taking the blow to his own shoulder.

Hearing Gokudera's grunt in pain, Tsuna looked back with wide eyes. The young brunette was trembling slightly. Why did Gokudera continue to protect him like this…?

"Hm…" Hibari stood straight and narrowed his eyes, looking down at the two boys in front of him. "I was almost looking forward to fighting the Tenth. If he beat you, Gokudera, he has to be strong." He eyed Tsuna with an almost hungry look in his eye. "But if you continue to hold him away from me, this will get boring fast. I've beaten you up too many times." He smirked at Gokudera.

Gokudera growled, standing up in between Tsuna and Hibari. "You shut up!" he snarled.

Hibari gave a single chuckle before he turned around and began to walk off, lifting one hand in a simple wave. "See ya."

Gokudera growled before he turned and kneeled down next to Tsuna. "Tenth, are you alright?" The anger in Gokudera's eyes was replaced now by concern.

"Me?!" Tsuna sat up and looked at the taller teen. "It's you who got hurt!" Tsuna stood up, grabbing Gokudera's hand. "Let's go to the nurse's office! Right now!"

"T-Tenth?" Gokudera was slightly confused as Tsuna lead him back into the school. But when the younger brunette mentioned the nurse, Gokudera bristled slightly. "Tenth, I'm fine. I'll only have a few bruises. Don't trouble yourself."

"It's not troubling, Gokudera. Really." Tsuna frowned, continuing to walk.

"Tenth, I'd really rather not…"

Tsuna turned and looked at Gokudera, realizing something was wrong. Gokudera looked very uncomfortable at the mention of the nurse's office. "What's wrong?"

Gokudera looked away as if debating on whether or not to answer the question. It seemed that a yes won out the fight because Gokudera started to speak, albeit a bit hesitantly. "Well… you see… The nurse is… my uncle."

"Your what?" Tsuna looked at Gokudera with an incredulous look on his face. He knew Gokudera had to have family, but it was hard to envision who his family was.

"My uncle." Gokudera pulled his hand out of Tsuna's grip. "Do we have to go to the nurse's office?" He then stopped and quickly added, "Ah, well. If you want me to go, Tenth, I'll go."

"Well, I just want to make sure you'll be okay…" Tsuna frowned, "But if you're uncomfortable about going…" He looked away for a moment before looking worriedly back at Gokudera.

Gokudera had this expression that was half guilt, half conflict. "I… understand, Tenth… I'll go."

"Well, don't go just because I'm telling you," Tsuna said, concerned.

"It's fine, Tenth. I'll go." Gokudera reassured him and he was already walking. He still had a bit of discomfort on his face but it seemed he was determined to go through with it. Tsuna followed Gokudera, just in case.

* * *

"You're here again, brat?"

The man that sat at the desk of the nurse's office was a familiar sight for Tsuna already, having visited the nurse's office a few times already. But when the familiar Dr. Shamal looked at Gokudera, a sour expression crossed the middle-aged man's face. Dr. Shamal looked quite ragged. The clothes on him were slightly loose and he had some messy sort of stubble on his chin. Now that Tsuna thought about it, his hair style, although black, was almost identical to Gokudera's.

"What did you do now?" Dr. Shamal scowled.

"It was that damn Hibari. This wasn't my fault." Gokudera copied the other's scowl.

The doctor just shook his head and rolled his eyes. He grabbed an ice pack and unceremoniously tossed it to Gokudera. "Take care of it yourself."

Gokudera gripped the ice pack and just growled before turning to leave the room. Tsuna looked unbelievingly at the doctor. "Shouldn't you… do something?" he asked timidly, but frowning nonetheless.

Dr. Shamal looked at Tsuna before shaking his head in annoyance. "That kid walks in here with more injuries every day. If he doesn't want to take care of himself, then why should I?" It was then that the doctor turned away and returned to his work.

Tsuna frowned slightly, staring at the man for a moment before hurrying out after Gokudera. He looked around and soon found the white-haired teen storming past the shoe lockers. "Gokudera!" Tsuna called, running over to him.

Luckily, Gokudera heard him and stopped. By the time Tsuna caught up, the teen had a guilty look on his face. "I'm sorry for leaving you behind, Tenth. I just got angry at him is all."

Tsuna shook his head sympathetically. "Don't worry, Gokudera," he said before giving him a small smile. "It's perfectly fine. Let's go back to class, alright?"

Gokudera looked at Tsuna for a moment before glancing at the front doors of the school. It seemed the teen had planned to skip out, but without further hesitation, he turned to the shorter brunette and nodded. "Alright, Tenth."

Tsuna smiled, pleased at this development. He reminded Gokudera to use the ice pack before walking with him down the hallway.

Gokudera was slightly uncomfortable at all of this kindness Tsuna was displaying. He used the ice pack on order, exchanging it from his bruised cheek to his fist. Tsuna felt the other's eyes trained on him the whole time. When he risked a look back, he saw, not a threatening gaze, but a curious one. Almost innocently so.

Tsuna looked forward again, wondering what Gokudera had been thinking.

* * *

The walk home was as normal as ever. Yamamoto, though, had to stay back for baseball practice. Other than that, hearing Ryohei and Gokudera prattle on and argue to each other actually brought a smile to Tsuna's face.

His whole life since the beginning of school, Tsuna had always walked home alone. He had been a loser. An idiot. No one wanted to talk to him let alone be his friend.

But now as he walked with people at his side, gang or not, it felt so good. Happy.

Of course, the happy feeling died momentarily when he had to break up the fight that was escalating between Ryohei and Gokudera. When he stepped between them, Ryohei scolded Tsuna so he wouldn't "get in the middle of an extreme fight." Gokudera responded by yelling at Ryohei not to give the Tenth orders. Before Tsuna could say anything else, Gokudera and Ryohei had locked eyes and glared at each other. The short brunette could practically see the electricity sparking between them.

Oh friendship. It was grand.


	7. Chapter 6

As Gokudera dropped the Tenth off at his house, he had to wonder what could possess him to be so… nice. The Tenth was always smiling at him and being calm and soothing even though he still sported the bruises that Gokudera himself gave to him.

It was utterly mindboggling.

Gokudera watched as the Tenth disappeared into his house before he continued walking on. He chewed at his lip slightly with a seemingly permanent frown marring his features. Gokudera had always been used to the people around him either ignoring him or pushing him away. There was only one other person who didn't do that, though he would rather that she did.

Gokudera frowned as he was reminded briefly of his sister who was waiting for him back at home. If they didn't have the same last name, one would have never known that they were related. Although Gokudera's hair color was pure white, his sister's own was a contrasting dark pink. Her eyes were a soft brown, once again, different from Gokudera's green. Not only that, but she was very attractive. She had a skinny, lean form and she seemed to strut every step she took. Gokudera often wondered why she never had a boyfriend.

It wasn't long before Gokudera found himself at the entrance to his apartment.

He opened the door and sighed before calling out, "Sis, I'm home."

Bianchi walked out of her bedroom and smiled a bit at her little brother. "Hayato, how was school?" she asked, picking her hair up in a ponytail. Gokudera noticed it looked a bit disheveled.

"Fine," he muttered vaguely like every teenager would. He sat down heavily on the couch before realizing he had just sat on something. Gokudera lifted himself up a bit and from under him, he fished out a… black beanie? Gokudera raised an eyebrow. He didn't own any hats. What it his sister's? It didn't seem like something she would wear.

He didn't have time to inspect it further before Bianchi came up and took it from him. "Do you want something to eat?" she asked with a smile.

At the sound of food, Gokudera's stomach did flip flops and he immediately forgot about the hat. There was one thing that wasn't completely immaculate about his sister.

Her cooking.

Bianchi's cooking could probably kill anyone that ate it. Gokudera once tried buying her a recipe book so that she could practice with instruction.

To this day, he still wondered how she burned that pot of water in less than five minutes.

Even when Gokudera realized that her skills at cooking were hopeless and he decided to buy instant meals instead, she ended up burning those too.

And she would always do things that she thought were okay. Like putting three tablespoons of hot sauce into a bowl of chicken soup one time when Gokudera was sick. It definitely cleared out his sinuses, along with half of his organs.

"No, I'm not... hungry…" Gokudera grimaced, putting a hand on his stomach in order to keep the nausea down. He'd get something to eat later.

"Are you sure? It's no trouble." Bianchi told him as she headed over to the kitchen. "I'll make you a sandwich. You look starved."

Gokudera had been about to stop her when he heard what she wanted to make. A sandwich… Well, that was foolproof, right? Two slices of bread, ham, cheese and that was it. No cooking required. It was just an assembly.

So with a heavy heart and a lot of regret, Gokudera sat back down, cautiously staring at the entrance to the kitchen as if afraid of what would come out. The worst part was that Bianchi was completely oblivious as to her horrible cooking and Gokudera didn't have the heart, or the courage for that matter, to break it to her.

But before he could further await his demise, he heard a loud thump in Bianchi's room. Gokudera was shocked for a moment before he hurriedly stood, thinking that someone had perhaps broken in through the window.

But what Gokudera saw when he opened the door was something much worse than a thief.

"You!" Gokudera growled, his eyes hardening.

"Now now, let's not get too hasty," Reborn said as he restacked a couple of books which had fallen over. It became obvious then who was the owner of the beanie Gokudera had found earlier; especially as Reborn didn't have his on him at the moment. He was also missing another article of clothing.

His shirt.

"WHO'S GETTING HASTY?!" Gokudera practically shrieked as he grabbed Reborn's shirt from his sister's bed and threw it at the older boy's head.

Reborn caught the shirt before hurriedly dropping it as Gokudera came at him, punching furiously. The older boy blocked the punches and didn't hesitate in speaking again. "Come on, I don't think Tsuna would like it if you beat up his older brother."

Gokudera hesitated for a single moment and that was all Reborn needed. He grabbed both of Gokudera's wrists and whirled the boy around, crossing his arms tightly over his chest and pinning them to his sides. The position was reminiscent of a straight jacket.

"Now," Reborn spoke into Gokudera's ear as the younger boy struggled in futile against him. "We're going to take a deep breath and calm down because I'm not going to fight you. Not here in front of your sister."

"You fucking bastard," Gokudera growled, stomping hard onto Reborn's foot. Or at least he tried since Reborn managed to pull his foot out of the way just in time. "Get the hell out of my apartment!"

"It's my apartment too, Gokudera." Bianchi stood at the doorway, a frown directed at the two boys. Reborn immediately let go of the younger teen. Gokudera stumbled forward, throwing Reborn a heated glare. Though the glare was broken when Bianchi spoke again.

"Gokudera, stop. We've been going out for a long time," Bianchi said, walking over to stand between Gokudera and Reborn.

Gokudera spotted Reborn's mocking smirk from over his sister's shoulder. It took every single fiber of resistance he had in order to not fucking jump on the asshole right that second and rip him to shreds. But then his sister would probably kick his ass in return.

That's when he figured out a suitable revenge.

"Sorry, Bianchi. I just got shocked," Gokudera said with a frown. "Why don't you cook dinner tonight and we can all sit down together and eat?"

As Bianchi's eyes lit up with delight, Reborn's expression changed to that of horror.

"Gokudera, that's a wonderful idea! I'll get right on dinner now! Reborn, you can stay, right?" When Bianchi turned to look at her boyfriend, Reborn did his best to put on a happy smile.

"Yeah! That sounds great!" Reborn said brightly.

Bianchi beamed before she hurried off to the kitchen.

Gokudera and Reborn stared at each other for a moment.

"You do know that this means you'll have to suffer through it too," Reborn spoke slowly.

"It'll be worth every bite." Gokudera narrowed his eyes in return.

Tsuna would later wonder why, when Reborn returned home later that night, he gulped down about five glasses of water.


	8. Chapter 7

Although the Tenth didn't know it, Gokudera had suffered his worst nightmare. Reborn, one of the people he hated most, was his sister's boyfriend. Every time Reborn would come over, which was a lot more often considering now Gokudera knew of him, the two would be at each other's throats. Bianchi would never catch them fighting though, because the one thing that was stronger than their hate for each other was their love for Bianchi.

Bianchi was lucky. Gokudera was not.

And while it seemed perfectly understandable that the Tenth didn't want Gokudera to fight, Gokudera _needed_ some sort of outlet. He considered, for a single moment, joining the boxing club, but that thought was thoroughly squashed away once Gokudera realized what he was thinking.

Hibari was always looking for something to quench his boredom. So it would only make sense that the school prefect and the former boss of the gang would enter a symbiotic relationship.

Hibari would find some fun and Gokudera would have an outlet. Everyone won.

Though, Gokudera couldn't help but to feel guilty once in a while when Tsuna spotted the new bruises on his arms and one rather nasty one on his face.

"Gokudera, are you okay?" Tsuna would ask every time.

"Of course, Tenth!" would always be Gokudera's reply.

The young brunette, still half intimidated by Gokudera, wouldn't follow the subject further than that. But the next day, the question would be offered up again. It seemed to happen without fail.

But about two weeks after, the cycle was broken when Dr. Shamal walked into Gokudera's first class. After a moment of speaking to the teacher, Gokudera soon found himself walking with his uncle back to the nurse's office.

"What do you want?" Gokudera frowned irritably.

"You're an idiot, you know that?" The doctor closed the door to the office behind them and sat down on a chair. "That kid, Tsuna, was it? He comes in here every freaking day asking me if I know what's going on with you."

Gokudera stared at his uncle for a moment. He knew that the Tenth had been worried, but for the boy to actively be asking around about his wellbeing…

"What the hell are you doing, kid?" Shamal nearly growled. "Here I am thinking that you finally found a normal kid to be friends with and you turn around and make him worry so bad the kid has to ask your family how you're doing. Problem is, I can't tell him a damn thing."

"Just, shut up, alright?" Gokudera growled back, the guilt welling up in his chest and growing nearly unbearable. "I'm handling it!"

"Well, you're handling it like an illiterate kid with a dictionary." The doctor stood up and walked over, standing right in front of his nephew. It was times like these where Gokudera registered how tall his uncle was. Nearly a head taller than he was. "You're being stupid. I bet it's that Hibari kid again. You're going around, looking for fights, and you're getting yourself beaten up for nothing!"

"It's not for nothing!" Gokudera scowled, matching his uncle's glare. "Because of me, that bastard Hibari isn't going after the Tenth!"

Shamal rolled his eyes before smacking Gokudera over the head. "Shut up and listen to yourself!" He raised his voice. "You're treating yourself like nothing! You're acting as if you have to put yourself in pain. Give some value to yourself!"

Gokudera rubbed his head with a scowl. Hearing Shamal's words, he couldn't help but scoff. Valuing life was for valuable people.

Shamal frowned and returned to his seat before rubbing his forehead. "You're going to give that kid high blood pressure at this rate. He's so worried about you. Whenever he walks in here, he just starts rambling and can't sit still."

Gokudera frowned. He was making the Tenth worry. Shamal's words had some merit.

"Promise me you'll take better care of yourself." His uncle slipped into a softer mode. "If not for yourself, then do it for that damn Tenth of yours."

The teen looked at his uncle for a moment before nodding slightly. "I get it. I get it…" he muttered with a frown. "I'll… figure something out."

"Figure it out soon," Shamal said sternly. Gokudera nodded once more and it seemed to satisfy the doctor, because he told Gokudera to go back to class.

How the hell was he going to figure this out?

Gokudera trudged for nearly the rest of the day. He spent most of his time thinking and wondering what he could possibly do to fix this. It was when class let out for the day and Gokudera was walking by the Tenth's side that he saw it.

Tsuna was going to ask again. The two boys were alone, the others having left a while ago on their walk down the road. Gokudera could see the question simmering on his boss' lips. He could see it right under the surface in his eyes as the wide brown orbs glanced his direction once in a while.

"Gokudera-"

"Tenth, I've been thinking," Gokudera spoke quickly, though realized that he had just spoken all over his boss's words. He immediately stopped, looking at the boy in a slight panic, but to his surprise, the Tenth wasn't angry about the interruption at all. So after a moment's hesitation, Gokudera continued.

"I've been thinking…" Gokudera repeated, a bit slower this time. He thought carefully about his words before he realized that there was no other way to put it. "Tenth, why do you care so much?"

"What do you mean, Gokudera?" The Tenth looked at him, slightly confused. This person… This person was so different than what Gokudera was used to.

"I mean, why do you care so much about me when…" Gokudera frowned, eyeing a bruise that still decorated Tsuna's face. "When I hurt you so badly?"

The Tenth bit his lip. Gokudera could see his hand twitch towards his side where he remembered the spot where he had delivered quite the kick.

"Because… I think you're much better than that, Gokudera. I really think we can be friends." The Tenth looked at him with those eyes again. Those purely innocent eyes that made Gokudera want to fall to his knees in awe. "I believe you're a really good person."

Gokudera just stared at the shorter boy for a moment. Where did he get off on saying these things? Where did he find the guts to make Gokudera _feel_ this way? The Tenth looked like every other weakling that walked in this town. But for some reason, Gokudera couldn't help but believe that this boy wasn't weak at all. At least, not in the way he had expected.

The evidence was clear in the way his heart pounded in his chest. Gokudera let out a breath he never remembered holding and swallowed in an attempt to moisten his dry throat. The Tenth made him feel so weak, so vulnerable, so…

_Happy._

"Tenth... I…" Gokudera struggled for words as he found himself unable to break eye contact with his boss. "I'm… sorry for making you worry." Suddenly strength shot through him and Gokudera stiffened on reflex. "It won't happen again!"

The Tenth smiled.

Gokudera almost melted. He knew then that he had to protect this small boy. This small, innocent, kind person. He'd protect him with every breath in his body.


	9. Chapter 8

Tsuna couldn't have the normal school days he wanted, but he liked to think that they were improving. By a lot.

After a few weeks, Ryohei had finally realized that he really didn't want to join the boxing club, so the jock would instead stick around them as a simple friend. Though, he would still drop a not-so-subtle hint with an over-exaggerated wink once in a while.

Yamamoto was in the height of his baseball season, having practice every afternoon and morning. But the smile on his face was always brighter than usual, however worn and tired he was.

The biggest change however had been in Gokudera. Tsuna was happy to see that the bruises on the white-haired boy healed and that there were no new ones showing up at all. On top of that, his right-hand man seemed to be getting more and more cheerful as time went on. He laughed at lunchtime, greeted him happily in the morning and said good bye in the afternoon with equal mirth. Even on certain days when Gokudera would help Tsuna with homework, he would be a lot more comfortable with his mother's kindness, though he still spoke very respectfully to her and Tsuna as well.

But he was smiling. And that was what mattered.

Tsuna thought about all of this with a small smile as he worked to clean the classroom. It was his turn on cleaning duty. Though Gokudera had been more than happy to take his place, Tsuna reminded him that he had his own things to do as well. So it was with a heavy heart that the white-haired teen made his way to the supply closet instead of accompanying his boss.

The brunette wiped down the desks as he was supposed to, another student cleaning the floor while yet another organized everything else. The two students kept their distance from Tsuna, though Tsuna noticed that at least no one was running away in fear anymore. Yet another improvement. Someone up there had to be looking out for him.

Or not.

Tsuna glanced up as the door to the classroom opened and did a double take.

"I finally caught you without that weakling trailing at your feet." Hibari Kyouya smirked.

Tsuna's eyes widened and he suddenly realized that the other two students had fled the classroom through the second door. When Tsuna was about to do the same, Hibari rushed in front of him, pressing a tonfa to the brunette's throat. Where did he even pull those things out from?!

"I-I haven't done anything!" Tsuna squeaked, taking several steps back and bumping into a desk in the process. He stumbled, moving to go around it but, in his panic, he tripped back over the chair beside it, landing flat on the floor in a pained heap.

Hibari watched this with half interest, half annoyance. "Hey. Aren't you supposed to be the one who defeated Gokudera?" he muttered, walking over to him.

"N-No! That's just- You don't understand!" Tsuna spluttered, quickly shuffling back until his back hit the next desk over. _Somebody help me!_

Tsuna saw Hibari get ready to strike. He did the only thing he could. Tsuna dove under the desk, listening as the metal tonfa clanged hard against the wooden desk, leaving a _dent._

There was a moment of stunned silence before things began to happen very fast. Hibari's hand reached down and grabbed Tsuna's ankle in a strong, firm grip. The brunette let out a yell as the prefect dragged him out from under the desk. Tsuna flailed around to grab hold of _something_ and ended up gripping the desk leg, which caused the already abused desk to fall over and crash loudly on the floor.

Another silence. This one had a bit more darkness in it.

Tsuna felt the hand around his ankle disappear to be replaced on the back of his neck. He winced as Hibari forced him to lean over the fallen desk, pressing the brunette's face into the severely cracked wooden slab.

"You broke school property."

"It was an accident!" Tsuna's voice broke in fear of the positively _murderous_ tone Hibari's voice held. He hesitated to look back at the prefect's face because he was sure it would contain the same amount of murder. But as the hand at his neck moved up to grip his hair, Tsuna had to glance behind him. The sight was positively horrifying.

Hibari's black eyes had turned cold and unfeeling. His mouth was pressed into a thin line and his expression was void of any emotion. His tonfa was pulled back, readying a strike.

Oh god.

"Kyouya, no!"

"Dino!" Tsuna nearly cried in relief as the older blonde grabbed the prefect's tonfa. Hibari scowled and let go of Tsuna in favor of whirling around and striking Dino's jaw with his tonfa…

Or at least trying to.

Dino dodged the strike easily. He had an expression on his face as if he was dealing with a bratty child. A wry smile on his face and his brow scrunched together. "Kyouya, you shouldn't beat people up over something so easily replaceable."

The prefect narrowed his eyes and instead of responding, he just continued to swipe at the blonde with his tonfas. But Dino continued to dodge them with a sigh. "Kyouya…" he spoke with a slightly scolding tone as he continued dodging. After a few more, Dino grabbed the tonfas, one in each hand. "Why don't you listen to me?" he sighed, almost exasperated.

"Tattoos are against school rules." Hibari said lowly, staring at Dino with an unreadable expression.

Tsuna watched in slight horror as Dino actually laughed while holding the weapons of one of the most dangerous student in the school.

"Listen to me, Kyouya." Dino changed the subject with a smile. "If you kill him now, you'll never get a chance to fight him."

Hibari looked at Tsuna and, to the brunette's surprise, actually looked like he was considering Dino's words. The prefect stared for a moment before he pulled his tonfas back from Dino and looked at the blonde, his blank expression back once more. "Fine. You replace the desk then."

"I'll give you the money this afternoon." Dino said with a smile and a small sigh of relief.

Tsuna let out a breath he hadn't realized he was holding as he watched the prefect leave the classroom. "Thank you, Dino!" he said as he got up to his feet. His knees were still shaking.

"Don't worry about it, Tsuna." The blonde smiled and walked over, lifting the desk back up and wincing at the large crack. "You really broke it, huh?"

"It was an accident!" Tsuna sputtered, but Dino just laughed and shook his head. Tsuna sighed softly and pulled up the chair he had knocked over as well before sitting down in exhaustion. "But, I'm impressed, Dino. I've tried to talk Hibari-san out of fighting and it's never worked. You did it in a few seconds."

The tattooed blonde smiled a bit crookedly at that and sat on one of the desks. "Well, I have to deal with him every day so-"

"What do you mean every day?" Tsuna interrupted, staring at him with slightly wide eyes.

Dino chuckled slightly and leaned back a bit. "Well since he's the Disciplinary Committee Head, he sometimes misses some classes. So every day I go over his house and teach him what he missed."

Tsuna's jaw dropped as he tried to imagine Hibari's house and what it would look like. Several scary images shot into his mind and Tsuna immediately tried to block it all out. "You're crazy, Dino!" Tsuna said, looking at the blonde with a mix of pity, surprise, and fear. "Does he fight you a lot?"

Dino laughed at this and nodded. "Every day. When we finish our tutoring, we train together." he confessed with a grin. "That was why he couldn't hit me. He is getting better though." Dino smiled thoughtfully. "I'll have to compliment him on that."

"He was trying to beat your face in!" Tsuna's voice cracked, desperately trying to make the blonde see that his life had obviously been in danger.

"Tenth!" The door slammed open right then with the familiar voice. Gokudera rushed in and grabbed Tsuna's shoulders before frantically looking him over. "Are you alright?!"

"Ah… Y-yes, Gokudera!" Tsuna was slightly shocked at this. "How did you…?"

Gokudera looked at Tsuna for a moment before he stood straight. "A right-hand man has to know when his boss needs him."

_Well you were late… _Tsuna sighed before smiling a bit and nodding. "Everything's fine now, Gokudera. Dino helped me while you were gone."

Gokudera looked as if he had first noticed the blonde. He stared for a moment before he nodded. "Thank you for guarding the Tenth while I was gone."

Dino smiled a bit and nodded. "He's practically like my little brother so I'll take good care of him. Let's protect Tsuna together."

Gokudera beamed at the blonde's words and nodded at the absolutely perfect idea.

Tsuna knew that as a boy, he should feel insulted about being protected. But he didn't feel insulted at all. He felt relieved and happy that he had such reliable people to look after him, especially when someone like Hibari was after him. "Thanks, guys," he said, relaxing a bit.

"No need for thanks, Tenth!" Gokudera said immediately, "I will make sure to protect you."

Dino laughed immediately at that and Gokudera gave him a hard glare. "What are you laughing at?!" the white-haired boy growled, looking completely different from the happy disposition he had seconds before.

Dino smiled despite the angry stare aimed at him and instead looked softly to Tsuna. "You found a good friend, Tsuna. I'm proud of you," he said before standing up. "I'll see you later, okay?" he said with a wave before leaving the classroom.

Gokudera huffed at this and glared at the door. "Weirdo," he muttered slightly. He then turned to Tsuna, but once he did, Gokudera had a smile on instead of a scowl. "I finished the supply closet, Tenth! Is there anything you need help with here?"

Tsuna was about to deny but then he remembered that the students who were supposed to be helping him had fled and probably weren't going to come back. He'd probably get into trouble with the teacher if he didn't finish on time. Luckily, they still had time. So Tsuna accepted Gokudera's help and they got to cleaning.

After about ten minutes, a couple of boys came into the classroom. At first, Tsuna was startled because they had the same disposition of Gokudera's previous gang. The only difference was that they had a red armband that said "Disciplinary Committee" on their right arms. As Tsuna stared, the two boys took the damaged desk and then brought in a brand new one before finally leaving without a single word.

And with that, the teacher had no idea that Hibari had ever even entered the classroom. In a way, Tsuna was glad.

He didn't want that guy coming after him again…


	10. Chapter 9

The rest of the day passed thankfully calm. Luck seemed to be on Tsuna's side. This fact was made true as Kyoko, the pretty girl he had met the first day he had seen Ryohei, called out to him.

"Tsuna-kun!" She smiled happily and Tsuna could practically see sparkles brighten the room.

"Kyoko-chan." Tsuna held his books as he stood at the entrance to the school. He had been about to meet Gokudera at the gates. "I-It's really nice to see you..."

"It's nice to see you too, Tsuna." Kyoko smiled gently. "Have you seen my brother?"

"Your brother?" Tsuna blinked.

"Mhmm. Ryohei. He hangs out with you a lot, right?"

Tsuna's eyes widened. "Ryohei's your brother?!" He was shocked. Ryohei was so loud and obnoxious whereas Kyoko was soft and gentle. He would have never thought that they were related.

"Yeah. So have you seen him?" Kyoko gave him another smile and Tsuna blushed darkly.

"Um, well, he challenged someone to a match and ran off not too long ago."

Kyoko looked a bit disheartened at this answer. "Aw. He promised he was going to take me and my friend shopping after school today." She sighed slightly. "Well, thank you, Tsuna-kun."

As Kyoko turned around, Tsuna felt like the fate had given him this chance. He had to gulp several times in order to moisten his dry throat. "U-Um! Kyoko-chan! I can take you and your friend if you want!" He hurried after her and Kyoko turned back to him.

"Really?" Kyoko beamed at Tsuna's words. "You'd really do that?"

"Y-Yes, of course!" Tsuna stood stiffly, similar to how Gokudera always did to him.

"Thank you!" Kyoko said happily. "Wait for me here, okay? I'm going to go pick my friend up from her class." And with that, she hurried off.

Tsuna watched her go and his shoulders slumped over, a small, silly looking smile on his face. He was going to spend the afternoon with one of the cutest girls he's ever seen. Not only that but her friend too. If only he could see Reborn's face when he saw Tsuna walking out of the school with two pretty girls. _I bet he'd be so jealous!_ Tsuna had to hold back a grin so he didn't look crazy to the students heading home.

Oh no. Gokudera was going to walk him home today. If Gokudera spotted him, he'd definitely follow Tsuna and he wouldn't be able to be with the girls without his right hand going on and on, calling him Tenth and yelling at anyone who got within a few feet of him. The girls would be horrified! Tsuna paled at this realization knowing that the luckiest moment of his life was also the most fragile. And Gokudera was the bull in the china shop.

The nervous brunette moved over to the doors of the school and peeked out of the window. Sure enough, at the gates of the school, Gokudera was standing there, looking around for him. Tsuna pressed himself against the wall as if afraid Gokudera would see him. What was he going to do?! How would he get out without Gokudera seeing him? Well at least he had some time to think about this. He had time before Kyoko returned with her friend to see how he was going to get past Gokudera.

"Tsuna!" Tsuna looked towards Kyoko's voice and realized with despair that his time was up.

Walking next to Kyoko was a girl who was pretty cute as well, but Tsuna vastly preferred Kyoko. The new girl had dark brown hair, tied up in a ponytail and bright brown eyes. She had a big smile on her face as if it was always there and a happy disposition.

"Hahi!" She made a small little squeak at the sight of Tsuna. "Is this the guy you were talking to me about, Kyoko-chan?"

"Uh-huh. This is Sawada Tsunayoshi. Tsuna-kun, this is Miura Haru." Kyoko said, introducing the two.

"It's nice to meet you!" Haru smiled and held out her hand. Tsuna smiled back and shook her hand with a nod. "So Kyoko-chan said you're going to take us shopping, right?"

"Yeah," Tsuna said before glancing back towards the gates. "But, um…"

"What's wrong, Tsuna-kun?" Kyoko asked, looking a bit concerned.

"It's just that… I think we should leave the school through the back!" Tsuna said hurriedly. "There's this guy at the gates and he looks really suspicious."

Haru looked out the window at the gates and put her hand over her mouth. "Hahi! Tsuna-san's right! He looks like a thug and he's just standing there looking around." She looked at Kyoko. "He's probably looking around for someone to steal from!"

"Oh no. Maybe we should leave through the back," Kyoko agreed before smiling. "Thank you, Tsuna-kun. I would have never noticed him."

"Yeah, Tsuna's our big strong knight, right, Kyoko-chan?" Haru's eyes positively sparkled as Kyoko nodded in agreement.

Tsuna's cheeks heated up as he walked with the girls towards the back exit of the school. He felt happy that they thought so highly of him but at the same time, Tsuna felt very guilty for ditching Gokudera like this. Well he was sure that after a few minutes, Gokudera would just head home. So he'll apologize to him the next day.

The following afternoon was one of the most fun few hours Tsuna had ever spent. He helped the girls by carrying their bags, but they weren't so crazy that they bought millions of things. He had about four bags on each arm but they weren't heavy. It was a reasonable amount and Tsuna was never one to complain anyway. The girls had even bought him a simple silver chain necklace with two charms. Kyoko had given him a silver heart charm (_A heart!_). Haru had given him a silver star. Right outside the store, Tsuna had put the two charms on the necklace and put it on. The girls' smiles lit up Tsuna's world.

The girls had decided to finish the afternoon with a cake shop but they realized that they didn't have enough money left over.

"Oh no." Haru pouted as she counted the money between Kyoko and herself. "There's not enough."

"Aw… I was looking forward to some chocolate cake too." Kyoko sighed. "I guess we'll just go home then."

"Chocolate cake?" Tsuna looked at the two girls. "My mom made a chocolate cake yesterday. We still have some left over. If you want, you can come over and have some."

"Really?" Kyoko's eyes brightened.

"That's so awesome!" Haru smiled bright. "Lead the way, Tsuna-san!" She pointed victoriously off into the distance. "To the cake!"

Tsuna smiled and lead them down the road. In the complete opposite direction Haru was pointing.

"Hahi!"

* * *

Tsuna figured that coming home with new friends was amazing enough. He never brought anyone home. So when his mother had seen him bring home three different friends, it was quite the pleasant surprise.

That's when Tsuna realized he probably gave his mother a heart attack.

She stood there staring as her little boy walked in with a girl on each side. Pretty girls too! Tsuna smiled at his mother who stood there with stars in her eyes.

"Mom, this is Kyoko and Haru. They're friends from school," he said and in an instant, his mother was on them.

"Oh, I know Tsu-kun can sometimes be a pain but please be patient with him. Did he help you out okay?"

"Mom!" Tsuna sighed exasperatedly.

"He was a great help!" Kyoko said with a bright smile.

"He even saved us from this thug!" Haru smiled equally as bright.

Tsuna's mother turned and immediately hugged her son close. "Oh, my boy is growing up so fast!"

"Mom!" Tsuna blushed with embarrassment, his cheeks darkening further at the sound of the girls giggling. "I invited them over because they wanted to try your cake!" he told her, hurriedly slipping out of his mother's grasp.

"Oh really? Well come on in, girls!" Tsuna's mother smiled and invited them into the kitchen.

The young brunette sighed slightly in relief and was about to follow them when there was a sudden knock at the front door. Tsuna raised an eyebrow, not aware that he was expecting anyone. He opened the door and his eyes widened.

"TENTH!" Gokudera's eyes were wide and he looked an unhealthy pale. He also had a dark bruise on his cheek. He took a step forward, his hands outstretched as if to hug him but he stopped, thinking better of it. Instead his hands hovered over Tsuna as he scanned him for any injuries. "Tenth, where have you been?! I've been looking everywhere for you!"

"Gokudera…" Tsuna frowned slightly, feeling guilty. "I just…"

"When I didn't see you come out of the school, I thought that bastard Hibari had gotten a hold of you!" Gokudera began to rant. "So I went after him!" That explained the bruise. "When I couldn't find you at school, I came here, but your mother said you hadn't come home yet so I went to search the town again and I couldn't find you so I was going to come back and check if you came back and you did!" Gokudera panted as he spoke quickly, his tone panicked and a slightly higher pitch than usual.

"Gokudera, I'm sorry. I should have told you where I was…" Tsuna said, looking down.

"Ah!" Gokudera flailed his hands quickly, shaking his head. "No! Tenth! It isn't your fault! I should have kept a closer eye on you! This is all my doing and I-"

"No, Gokudera." Tsuna frowned. "This isn't your fault. I was the one who snuck out of the school. I… I'm sorry. I really am. I didn't know you would have taken it so hard."

Gokudera stared at Tsuna for a moment and looked down. "I… Of course I did," he muttered. "The Tenth is… The Tenth has become a very precious person to me."

Tsuna looked at him in slight shock. "What do you mean?"

"Even though I was so horrible to you…" Gokudera took a deep breath, "Even though I beat you up multiple times, you saved my life. And… you continue to be so kind to me." He looked at Tsuna with eyes that brimmed with gratitude and determination. "I've never met anyone like you, Tenth, and I want to do my best to protect you with everything I have!"

Tsuna stared at him for a moment. He felt his heart pound a bit with gratitude of his own. He opened his mouth to say something but no words came. He never thought anyone could be so… devoted.

"Tenth…" Gokudera took the other's silence as a sign to continue. "I promise that as your right-hand man, nothing bad will happen to you. I'll protect you with every breath in my body."

"Gokudera, I…" Tsuna stared at him for a moment before biting his lip. To see Gokudera standing before him, saying such words with such pure determination… It blew him away. No one had ever come close to saying these things to him. He never really had friends. Tsuna had always stuck with his older brother. But as soon as he met Gokudera, his life had changed for the better. He was… actually truly happy.

The small brunette moved forward and hugged Gokudera tightly. He felt the white-haired male tense at the contact but after a few moments, he wrapped his arms around his small boss.

"Thank you so much, Gokudera," Tsuna said softly.

"Anything for you, Tenth," Gokudera replied without hesitation.

Though after a few moments, as if realizing what he was doing, Gokudera quickly let go of Tsuna and took a step back. "Well, if you're okay, I guess I'll get going, Tenth…" Gokudera said, fiddling with the hem of his shirt as he looked off to the side.

"Ah, well. You can come in." Tsuna said quickly, feeling like he had to make this up to Gokudera. "I brought some friends over and we're going to have some cake." He smiled a bit.

"I don't want to intrude!" Gokudera said, waving his arms quickly.

Tsuna caught one of the flailing arms and smiled, gently pulling Gokudera into the house. "You're never intruding, Gokudera. You should know that by now. Come on in."

"Ah, yes… Thank you, Tenth." Gokudera muttered as he closed the door behind him. He took off his shoes at the entrance before following Tsuna into the kitchen.

"HAHI! It's that dangerous thug!" Haru's eyes widened and she stood, pointing to Gokudera.

"Thug?" Nana blinked before she smiled. "Oh, hello, Gokudera-kun! It's so nice to see you again."

"Good afternoon!" Gokudera bowed low to Tsuna's mother.

"It's okay," Tsuna said quickly, trying to calm Haru. "Gokudera isn't a thug."

"But… I saw him! At the gate!" Haru frowned slightly.

"Maybe you were looking at the wrong person," Kyoko supplied helpfully.

Tsuna nodded quickly, happy Kyoko had spoken up. "Yes. Gokudera-kun is a very dear friend of mine," he said with a small shy smile.

Gokudera looked at Tsuna and his eyes filled to the brim with happiness. "Tenth…!" He looked as if he was about to burst into tears.

Tsuna laughed and blushed slightly. "Gokudera-kun! It's okay. Sit down," he said as he sat down himself. His mother served them all a slice of cake and to Tsuna's surprise, the girls warmed up quickly to Gokudera.

"I knew the Tenth would treat girls right!" Gokudera said with the upmost confidence.

"It's… not that hard, Gokudera…"

"And we got him a necklace! Look, look, look!" Haru leaned over and showed Gokudera the necklace around Tsuna's neck. "Kyoko-chan and I gave him a charm! So he has two!" She smiled happily.

Gokudera looked at the necklace for a moment before looking over himself frantically. After a moment, Gokudera pulled off one of the gold rings from his fingers and held it out to Tsuna with a bowed head. "Tenth! Please accept this!"

"Huh?" Tsuna blinked in shock and looked at Gokudera for a moment before he took the ring. His right hand looked at him hopefully but silently and it took a second before Tsuna understood. The small brunette smiled before taking off the necklace. He slid the ring onto the chain before putting it back on and looking at his right-hand man.

Gokudera was positively beaming like a child that had gotten everything he wanted on Christmas morning. "Thank you, Tenth!" he said happily, as if he had been the one to receive the gift.

Tsuna laughed slightly. "Thank you, Gokudera-kun. I'll treasure it."

Needless to say, Gokudera was happy beyond words, though he still managed to wrestle some out. "Yes! Thank you very much, Tenth!"

"Saying thank you back and forth, you two are really polite!" Kyoko said with a smile, finding no problem with the utter and complete devotion and joy Gokudera was currently showing.

Haru, though, found trouble with it. "Tsuna-san! Don't forget I got you my charm first!" she said with a slight pout. Tsuna laughed slightly and nodded as Gokudera narrowed his eyes at her.

They all enjoyed a slice of cake and, much to Tsuna's embarrassment, his mother made the girls promise to visit him again. As usual, Gokudera was the last to leave, going only after insisting to help clean up the dirty plates. So Tsuna accompanied his right-hand man in cleaning the dishes, even though Gokudera announced that he didn't have to. When Tsuna replied that he _wanted_ to, the white-haired male's protests turned into a shocked but pleased silence.

Gokudera soon left after that with another spirited goodbye. Tsuna smiled and waved as his right-hand man walked off down the street. He felt like he had gotten a lot closer to Gokudera that day.


End file.
